The average wage in the economy in September per employee rose by 5% to NIS 11,373

The average wage in the economy in September per employee post was NIS 11,373, an increase of 4.9% compared to the corresponding month last year (NIS 10,840). Among the main reasons: layoffs and expenses for low-wage workers. However, in September, the average wage per employee fell by 1.6% compared to the previous month, according to data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) published on Thursday.
In high-tech, the increase in wages is even sharper: an employee in the field earned an average of NIS 24,327 in September, an increase of 5.3% compared to the corresponding month last year and an amount similar to August 2020 (NIS 24,251).
The Central Bureau of Statistics explains that data on wage and employment indices are based on monthly reports of employers to the National Insurance Institute. The outbreak of the corona plague in March 2020 affected both the reduction in the volume of work in the economy in terms of the number of employee jobs and the average wage per employee job.
Wages and employment data include the number of workers employed in that month and the total wages paid to them. The calculation of the average wage does not refer to the number of days in the month in which the employee was employed. Therefore, due to the first closure that began in mid-March, there was a decrease in the average wage per employee post in that month. In April, on the other hand, the average wage rose sharply because the workers who were laid off or fired from their jobs are usually workers whose wages were lower than average.
At the top of the list of industries in which the average wage in September is the highest apart from high-tech are information and communications with NIS 24,000; Electricity and water supply, sewage services and waste treatment with about 20,000; Financial services and insurance services with about 18,000; Local public administration and security and social security with about NIS 17,000. At the bottom of the list: entertainment and leisure art with NIS 6,955 and hospitality and food services with only NIS 4,571.
As mentioned, the corona crisis also affected the number of employees in the economy: 3.376 million in September, a decrease of 9.4% compared to the corresponding month last year (3.725 million). Most of the damage was suffered by the hospitality and food services industry, with a decrease of 38.1% in the number of employee jobs. In the arts, entertainment and leisure industry there was a decrease of 34%, and in the trade industry there was a decrease of 10.7%.
In September, the largest sector was the non-financial corporations sector, with 2.171 million employee jobs (64.3% of all employee jobs in the economy). The average salary per employee job in this sector was NIS 12,125. The number of employee jobs in the high-tech field was 323.4 thousand, similar to August (324.1 thousand) and a decrease of 1% compared to September 2019 (326.6 thousand).
It should be noted that against the background of the corona crisis the Treasury recently proposed to freeze the average wage in the economy. The decision was made following a sharp rise in the average wage as a result of the hundreds of thousands of workers who were fired and expelled, many of whom earn lower than average.
In addition, the Finance Committee approved a few days ago the cancellation of the salary update for government officials for 2021. In addition, the Knesset plenum last week approved the temporary order to freeze the salaries of Knesset members in 2021.
The salaries of Knesset members, which currently stand at over NIS 45,000 gross per month, were expected to be updated in January 2021 in accordance with the average salary in the economy, which rose sharply. The bill stipulates in the temporary directive that the bill will freeze the salary increase of 90 Knesset members. The Knesset plenum approved in the second and third reading the bill to abolish the update of the salaries of Knesset members in 2021.