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Carlos Vacas-Soriano


Carlos Vacas-Soriano is a research manager in the employment unit at Eurofound. He works on wage and income inequalities, minimum wages, low pay, temporary employment and employment quality.

Carlos Vacas-Soriano

Closing the Chasm: Central and Eastern Europe’s Continued Minimum Wage Climb

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 21st May 2025

Minimum wages in Central and Eastern Europe continue to rise, narrowing the gap with Western European levels.

A diverse regional picture in income disparities across Europe

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 14th November 2024

After years of being sidelined in the European policy debate as labour markets recovered in the wake of the Great Recession, inequality is back on the agenda.

Ensuring adequate minimum wages in an age of inflation

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 27th June 2022

Minimum wages have risen across Europe this year. Inflation is eroding them.

Minimum wage—yet another gender divide?

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 28th October 2021

The number of minimum-wage earners has increased across Europe over the last decade—and they are more likely to be women.

Minimum wages rise, but more slowly

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 13th July 2021

Convergence of central and eastern-European EU members towards older ones with high minimum wages is much stronger than in the Mediterranean countries.

The new Spanish minimum wage

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 16th July 2019

Raising wage floors is one way to reduce inequality and stimulate recovery in Europe. A big uplift in the Spanish minimum wage this year provides a test bed.

Germany’s Minimum Wage Has Reduced Wage Inequality

Carlos Vacas-Soriano 22nd June 2018

Wages grew and wage inequality fell in most EU countries in 2015. Germany is not one of the countries where wages rose most but it did have the largest reduction in wage inequality. Our analysis shows that the German minimum wage policy introduced in 2015 significantly lifted the wages of the lowest-paid employees, particularly the […]

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How are minimum wage levels changing in Europe?

In a new Eurofound Talks podcast episode, host Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound expert Carlos Vacas Soriano about recent changes to minimum wages in Europe and their implications.

Listeners can delve into the intricacies of Europe's minimum wage dynamics and the driving factors behind these shifts. The conversation also highlights the broader effects of minimum wage changes on income inequality and gender equality.

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WSI Report

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. The background to this is the implementation of the European Minimum Wage Directive, which has led to a reorientation of minimum wage policy in many countries and is thus boosting the dynamics of minimum wages. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50 % of the average wage. However, for Germany, a structural increase is still necessary to make progress towards an adequate minimum wage.

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