EAES Annual Wage Structure Statistics

The main purpose of the Annual Wage Structure Statistics is to identify the average annual gross income per worker classified according to sociodemographic variables and other variables related to the occupation. The Survey also provides information on average hourly earnings, according to the different characteristics of the occupation, and on the distribution of wages, which enables studies to be carried out on wage inequality. The two basis sources of statistics to work out the annual gross earnings are the Annual Wage Structure Survey and the Wage Structure Survey.

The Annual Wage Structure Survey in an operation performed annually by the INE and it is the result of the combination of different statistical and administrative sources. Its purpose is to obtain comparable results regarding the structure and distribution of wages in the years that the Wage Structure Survey (every four years) is not conducted. Idescat conducts an expansion of the results for the area of Catalonia.

The Wage Structure Survey is a sampling procedure, conducted four times a year by the National Institute of Statistics by means of a questionnaire that the employer must complete. The primary objective is to obtain results on the salary levels of employees and find out what the differences in distribution are as a result of characteristics of employees and their occupations. Furthermore, it enables the wage structure itself to be determined, both in terms of its composition and any other variables that may influence it. Idescat conducts a detailed study of the Wage Structure Survey and from this it obtains an expansion of results for Catalonia.