Greek companies have never been more profitable relative to their European peers. Greek workers, meanwhile, are among the lowest paid in the European Union. Both statements are true at the same time, and the distance between them is shaping how people in Greece look for jobs, ask for a raise and decide whether to stay in the country at all.

The figures come from Eurostat and European Commission data, analysed in a recent report by the Greek daily Efimerida ton Syntakton (EfSyn). Read together, they describe what the paper calls “two Greeces”: one counting record returns, the other counting the cost of living.

Record profits: Greece tops the EU three years running

Greece ranks first in Europe on Eurostat’s whole-economy profitability index for 2024 and 2025, and again for 2026 based on the Commission’s spring forecasts. The measure tracks net returns on net capital stock across the total economy, using the AMECO database run by the Commission’s economic and financial affairs directorate (DG ECFIN).

Taking 2020 as a baseline of 100, Greece’s profit index is forecast to reach 166.4 in 2026. Croatia comes second at 149, with Ireland third. Put simply, returns on capital in Greece have grown by roughly two thirds in six years.

Those profits are also highly concentrated. Based on first-half results from 48 large companies listed on the Athens exchange, a top tier of listed firms holds 90% of market capitalisation and 85% of the profits of all Athens-listed companies.

Wages: 45% of the EU average

On the other side of the ledger, the average annual salary in Greece was €18,000 in 2024, compared with an EU average of €39,800. That is about 45% of the EU level. On nominal average full-time annual pay, Greece ranked 26th of 27 member states, ahead of Bulgaria alone.

Adjusting for prices narrows the gap without closing it. In purchasing power standards, Greek salaries were 20% below the EU average in 2024. Lower prices soften the blow, but they don’t make up the difference.

The social figures follow the same pattern. Greece’s at-risk-of-poverty-or-social-exclusion rate stands at 27.5%, against an EU average of 20.9%, the second highest in the bloc after Bulgaria. The narrower at-risk-of-poverty rate is 19.6%, the fourth highest in the EU.

Why productivity alone doesn’t explain the gap

The usual explanation for low wages is low productivity, and it carries some weight here. Greek labour productivity, measured as GDP per hour worked in purchasing power standards, was 54.6 in 2025 with the EU set at 100, up from 52.5 in 2020.

The comparison is still telling. Since 2020, productivity has risen by about two points while the profit index has climbed by more than 60. The gains of the recovery have gone mostly to returns on capital rather than to pay. Macro risks are also building: the current account deficit is expected to reach 7% of GDP or more in 2026.

For employees: what this means for your pay

If you work in Greece, these numbers don’t tell you what you are worth. They do tell you something useful: many employers, especially large listed ones and their supply chains, are on firmer financial ground than pay levels suggest. That matters when you prepare for a salary negotiation.

• Check the company’s results. Listed firms publish half-year and annual figures. If profits are growing, “there’s no budget” is a weaker argument.
• Benchmark before you ask. Compare your pay with people in the same role and sector, not just with the national average, and run offers through a salary calculator to see what you actually take home.
• Read employer reviews. What current and former staff say about raises and promotions often tells you more than a job advert.
• Weigh moves carefully. A 20% purchasing-power gap with the EU average is real, but so are relocation costs. Compare net income against living costs, not headline figures.

For HR teams and employers: the retention risk

For HR leaders, the profit-wage gap is a talent problem as much as a social one. When skilled and younger employees can see both strong company results and pay well below EU levels, they find it easier to justify leaving, either for a competitor or for another country.

The pressure falls unevenly. Small and medium-sized enterprises account for a very large share of employment in Greece, yet according to the EfSyn analysis they lack liquidity and bank credit. In a downturn, they could become a source of mass unemployment. In good times, they struggle to match the pay of the top-tier firms that hold most of the profits.

• Link pay reviews to performance data. Organisations with rising margins and flat wages leave an obvious story for departing staff to tell.
• Publish clear salary ranges. Transparency builds trust when workers already suspect the split is unfair.
• For SMEs, compete beyond base pay. Flexibility, training and clear progression can offset part of the gap with larger firms.
• Track exits by cohort. If younger, skilled employees leave fastest, that is the early warning sign.

The question for the year ahead

Greece’s recovery has produced strong balance sheets. Whether it also produces better pay depends on choices made inside companies: in bargaining rounds, pay reviews and budgets. For workers, the most useful step is to compare real pay data. For employers, the most useful step is to accept that profits and people’s pay are now being compared openly.