The average salaries in East Germany are still well below those in the West. But the gap is starting to close - full-time women in particular are catching up. Within the East, they now earn more than men.
More than 30 years after reunification, there are still large differences in wages between east and west - also in relation to gender: statistically speaking, women with full-time jobs earn more in the east than men and in the west it is exactly the opposite, according to the Federal Employment Agency (BA) announced.
On the occasion of the upcoming Day of German Unity, the authority published data on the so-called median wages: half of the employees earn more than this value, the other half is below it. "Overall, the median wages in eastern Germany are still well below those in the west," explained the BA. "The general trend is that the differences are getting smaller, albeit slowly."
According to the latest available figures, the median salary for full-time employees subject to social security contributions in East Germany is 3,007 euros. At 3060 euros, women earn an average of 82 euros more than men, who thus come to 2978 euros. "The higher median of women working full-time is limited by the high proportion of women working part-time throughout Germany," emphasized the BA - almost half of eastern German women work part-time.
In the West, on the other hand, full-time employed men are in the lead when it comes to median earnings - and very clearly so: they earn an average of 3787 euros, 461 euros more than women.
"The different median salaries of men and women in the two large parts of the country go back to the respective industry structures," explained the BA. In the old federal states, there are many more large companies "in male-dominated sectors with corresponding tariff structures". The authority cited the manufacturing sector as an example.
In contrast, in East Germany the proportion of women in sectors with collective wages is relatively high. Examples include public administration and health care.
