Salaries in the US: why are significantly higher than in Europe?

The sums quoted sometimes on social media can sometimes seem enviable. The Times explains why salaries are higher in the US, and why you shouldn't tinker. Posted on February 20, 2024 at 10:02 am , read 1 min.

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On social media, some posts about exorbitant American salaries are going viral. The fact is that "some of the differences in salaries [between Europe and the US] are staggering," notes The Times. For example, the salary of a chief technology officer ("new technology director") averages €93,000 in the UK versus €231,000 in the US. Even less skilled positions, such as store manager or car salesman, are also affected. The areas of health care, nurses, midwives and specialist doctors are becoming the biggest disparities, feeding fears of transatlantic medical emigration. And it's not just the UK that is facing a growing wage gap: the whole of Europe is following the same trend, especially as "wage increases in the UK have been better than in France or Germany over the past twelve months". The British newspaper looked for explanations and identified three main ones:

Growth:

The US has experienced growth of 2.5% in 2023 with consumption increasing despite inflation, while the UK has officially entered recession and growth forecasts for the West of Europe are declining.

Consequences of the economic crisis of 2008:

The UK was more seriously affected and took longer to recover.

Productivity:

British workers are less productive than their American counterparts (but also less productive than Germans and French).

Not such a rosy reality, The Times warns, you also need to consider more than just the numbers. If average salaries are higher in the US, this is not true for all positions, and the most modest salaries are comparable.

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