BRUSSELS – Brussels salaries are the highest in Belgium even though employees work shorter hours according to a comparative study by social welfare group SD Worx.

The average monthly salary for a Brussels employee is EUR 3,078, compared to EUR 2,723 in Flanders, and EUR 2,677 in Wallonia.

A Brussels employee therefore earns 13 percent more than his Flemish colleagues, and 15 percent more than those working in Wallonia.

While Brussels is the country’s capital and home to many international companies and European institutions, a more surprising discrepancy can be found in the difference between salaries in Flanders and Wallonia.

For workers under the age of 30, Flemings can expect an average salary of EUR 2,243, compared to just EUR 2,095 in Wallonia.

Variable extras such as commission and end of year bonuses are also higher in Flanders than in Wallonia according to the study, with extras of EUR 5,377 per annum in Flanders, and EUR 4,875 in Wallonia – this figure increases to EUR 6,875 in the Brussels region.

Paradoxically, Brussels’ working hours are the lowest of all three regions, while least paid Walloon workers clock with the highest working hours in Belgium.

[Copyright Expatica News 2003]

Subject: Belgian news