Global Wage Report 2022-23

The Global Wage Report 2022-23 highlights that the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent global rise in inflation have reduced wages and the purchasing power of households, hitting low-income groups particularly hard. Real wage growth is dipping into negative figures in many countries, causing a cost-of-living crisis and increasing inequality, which may threaten the economic recovery and lead to social unrest. Inflation is predicted to reach 8.8% globally by the end of 2022, declining to 6.5% in 2023 and 4.1% in 2024. Global monthly wages fell in real terms to -0.9% in the first half of 2022, the first negative global wage growth recorded since 2008. This comes on top of significant wage losses incurred by workers and their families during the COVID-19 crisis. Average wages increased globally by 1.5% in 2020 and by 1.8% in 2021, with average real wage growth slowing in emerging economies and remaining stagnant in advanced economies.