East Germans still earn up to 40pc less than westerners
Wednesday, 13 June 2007
FRANKFURT, June 12 (AFP): Workers in the former East Germany still earn up to 40 per cent less than their counterparts in the west of the country nearly two decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, according to a study published yesterday.
The poll conducted by the Hans-Boeckler foundation found that on average salaries are 20 per cent lower in the former communist part of Germany than in the west.
Those in the economically depressed east who are the worst off compared to their western counterparts are web designers, the study found.
In the west they take home an average of 2,300 euros (3,000 dollars) a month in the west but in the east only 1,359 euros-a difference of 40.9 per cent.
The poll conducted by the Hans-Boeckler foundation found that on average salaries are 20 per cent lower in the former communist part of Germany than in the west.
Those in the economically depressed east who are the worst off compared to their western counterparts are web designers, the study found.
In the west they take home an average of 2,300 euros (3,000 dollars) a month in the west but in the east only 1,359 euros-a difference of 40.9 per cent.