In addition to differences in economic strength, the WSI researchers believe that the lower number of collective agreements in eastern Germany accounts for lower pay. Full-time employees in eastern Germany still earned around 16 percent less per month than those in west Germany, according to the report. However, the wage gap between east and west is becoming smaller: in 2017, wages were on average 19 percent higher in the western states. A gap between eastern statesThere is also a gap in wages between the eastern German states themselves, according to the WSI report. Here, employees in eastern Germany earned 18.4 percent less than in the west.

Source: The Local October 01, 2019 09:56 UTC