The European Union is far from homogeneous. Particularly with regard to the labor cost which can range from 6.5 euros in Bulgaria at 47 euros at Luxembourg. In this heterogeneous panel, in 2020, France is positioned quite high, in 5th place among the highest in the EU with 39.2 euros per hour worked, according to a European survey carried out every four years and published Wednesday by INSEE. This hourly cost is calculated in companies with ten or more employees in the non-agricultural market sector, excluding household services.
In the EU of 2020, the average is 28.2 euros per hour worked. France is behind Luxembourg, the Denmarkthe Sweden and the Belgiumbut in front germany (37,2 euros).
Social security contributions at one of the highest levels
The share of wages in the cost of labor varies significantly from country to country depending on the method of financing social protection. Thus, the social contributions and other charges represent only 12.5% of the cost of labor in Denmark due to the financing of social protection by taxation. Conversely, they represent 26.7% of labor costs in Spain, 28.4% in Italy and 30.6% in France, one of the highest levels in Europe after Sweden.
In France, the hourly cost of labor varies significantly depending on the sector of activity, geographical location or even the size of the company. It is highest in the financial activities and insurance sector (60.3 euros) and lowest in accommodation-catering (23.8 euros). It amounts to 42.5 euros in companies with more than 1,000 employees, or 10.5 euros more than in those employing 10 to 49 employees. This gap is very marked in industry (21.5 euros difference). This average cost is also significantly higher in Ile-de-France at 48.3 euros compared to 35.6 euros in the rest of the territory.