Summer brings attention to wages in Spain’s service sector where waitstaff remains among the lowest paid, averaging around 1,186 euros per month. Despite this, the sector has seen a notable wage uptick, with an increase of 28.4 percent in the average wage over the period analyzed. The payroll findings come from a report by Adecco, highlighting how hospitality salaries have evolved in Spain, with regional figures such as 1,822 euros per month on average for hospitality workers and slightly higher figures in the Valencian Community at around 1,665 euros. This data point marks a historic peak in the series, reflecting the strongest year over year rise since 2008, at about four percent in the most recent period that was surveyed.
It is important to note that the hospitality sector experienced a dramatic downturn in 2020 with a 33.5 percent drop in average salaries. Although subsequent years showed a rebound, the gains did not fully offset inflation. When adjusting for consumer price changes, average wages still register a loss in purchasing power, approximately four percent, equating to around 850 euros less in real terms, as prices rose more quickly in 2022. In comparison with the crisis of 2008, Spain’s purchasing power for wages has declined by about seven percent since that period. These conclusions come from the Adecco Monitor XI on wages and fees. Even so, the inflation-adjusted trend reveals that wage growth did not fully preserve purchasing power in real terms during the analyzed stretch.
The survey shows a persistent gap between the national average salary and the average wage in the hospitality sector, with a difference of about 636 euros. Over the period from 2017 to 2022, purchasing power declined across all autonomous communities. Castilla La Mancha suffered the largest hit at around 6 percent, followed by Cantabria around 5.9 percent, Asturias near 5.6 percent, and La Rioja around 5.2 percent. Catalonia was the least affected, with a roughly 0.4 percent decline. In the Valencian Community, the drop stood at about 1.4 percent. These regional disparities reflect structural differences in labor markets and cost of living across Spain. The analysis emphasizes how inflation and regional economic conditions interact to shape wage dynamics in the service sector.
The financial sector continues to offer the highest average salary within the services sector, averaging 3,334 euros per month, even though it experienced a slight year over year decrease of about 0.04 percent. Within this category, the lowest paid role in services remains in the hostel and hospitality niche, where the gap can reach roughly 2,148 euros between the top and bottom earnings within the sector. This illustrates a pronounced pay spread inside service industries where high-skill financial roles contrast with lower-wage hospitality positions. The findings underscore how sectoral composition drives overall wage structures in the economy.
Fee range
The gap between the median wages across all economic segments can be as large as about 2,821 euros per month, corresponding to roughly 33,849 euros annually. This is driven by the difference between higher paying electricity and gas jobs, averaging 4,007 euros per month, and other areas within the service economy. The analysis shows that the first major economic division often exceeds the second by about 3.4 times, narrowing the gap compared with the previous year when the distance between the two hovered around 3,201 euros per month, or about 4.5 times. This shift points to evolving wage dynamics between different sectors and firm sizes over time.
The data indicate that the salary level in the first economic sector surpassed that in the second sector of finance and insurance by roughly 3.4 times, a reduction in the wage gap from the prior year when the separation stood at around 3,201 euros per month. The trend reveals a movement toward a tighter spacing between these substantial economic segments and highlights ongoing adjustments in sectoral pay comparisons across Spain. These patterns are part of the broader wage landscape described in the Adecco wage report series.
Construction damaged
In the construction and related sectors, the average wage has lost purchasing power in three main areas of the economy. The construction industry endured the steepest hit with a decline near five percent, equating to around 1,022 euros per year in real terms. Other significant decreases included a four to five percent drop, translating into roughly 1,088 euros less per year in the second sector, with services showing the least damage at about a 3.8 percent fall, equivalent to a 772 euro annual decrease. These shifts illustrate how inflation and sector-specific downturns interact to erode real incomes for workers across major industries.
By company size
Wage gaps by company size show the largest divergence in 2022, with the gap around 578 euros per month, or about 6,939 euros annually. As a percentage, this represented roughly 37 percent, down from 41 percent in 2021 and 45 percent in 2017. Consequently, average wages for small companies at about 1,549 euros per month are outpacing those of larger firms at roughly 2,127 euros monthly. In 2022, the average full-time employee earned about 2,095 euros per month gross, while part-time workers averaged around 863 euros per month. Over the past five years, the purchasing power of the average full-time wage has fallen by about 4.3 percent, whereas part-time purchasing power has risen by approximately 2.4 percent. These dynamics reflect how firm size influences wage levels and purchasing power across the economy, driven by staffing models, demand, and cost structures.
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