Real salaries of Belarusians keep growing, although they decrease
Euroradio tried to clarify how to calcualte salaries so that even the ones which decrease would grow, with the help of economists and BelStat.
BelStat has marked the beginning of the month with another press-release, in which they stated that the population's incomes grew again. And this is even upon consideration of inflation!
BelStat: “In January-July 2011 real
financial incomes of the population (the incomes have been calculated with
consideration of amendment of the consumer prices index for goods and services)
have increased by 10,2%”.
Euroradio asked whether it meant that the increase of salaries in Belarus
surpassed the increase of prices. If so, then why do we need indexation of
salaries? And why the government keeps promising that the increase of salaries
should reach the increase of prices till the end of the year?
On the other hand, if we take into account that inflation has made 53% since
the beginning of this year, that means, salaries should have grown by the whole
63%! However, they do not feel it at the enterprises.
Minsk wheel engines plant: “The most important is that our
salaries do not catch up with prices, the prices grow and the salaries do not
grow that quickly. Thus, we have nothing to boast about here. We raised the
salaries, for example, by 10% - so what? We still cannot catch the prices”.
Economist Leanid Zlotnikau says that there are no mistakes in BelStat's calculations. The point is, BelStat compares salaries for a certain time period. A real average salary for January-July this year is indeed higher than at the same time period last year…
Leanid Zlotnikau: “Yes,
the real salary for the period January-July this year has grown in comparison
with the same period last year. However, people do not live with this
comparison.... It's dynamics what's important for them. If we take August and
compare it to December - the real salary has decreased by 18% [see the table - Euroradio]. People think like this -
there was a lot of money and now there is less, I can buy less now... They
count month to month, not for the periods”.
If we compare August to December, one can buy less in August than in December for this salary. Purchasing power is the real salary in the end of it all, the economist says.
"There is the increasing result, and a clear month. Therefore, it turns out that the real salary for the period January-July has grown, while the real salary for the clear month has decreased", - BelStat explains.
