It is not a secret that consumer prices in the United Arab Emirates have not stopped on their way up during the last one year. From renting home to living costs, consumer prices across all service sectors are skyrocketing. A new study has found that this has a direct effect on the salaries in the UAE. According to it, wages are not increasing with the rate of the inflation in the country.
Moreover, the research has discovered that UAE salaries have actually decreased over the past one year. It is estimated that the average wages per month have dropped by nearly 2% in 2013.
Despite that, managing directors and chief executive officers still get the highest salaries in the UAE. That is the case with both – international and local companies. Nevertheless, the margin between the average monthly salary of a CEO working in a multinational company in the country and that of a CEO in a local company is impressive. As a matter of fact, the difference is calculated at nearly $7,000 per month. In addition, average monthly wages of both types of professionals have witnessed a decrease over the last one year. Within local companies, the fall was estimated at more than 12%, whereas in global companies it amounted to 11.7%.
Researchers behind the report explain that this is not the first time in which the United Arab Emirates witnesses a price spike across all sectors. A similar trend was seen during the pre-crisis period. However, the study adds that as back then, salaries today are not catching up with the jumping living costs. Moreover, experts are confident that the effects of World Expo 2020 are yet to be felt. Nevertheless, they assure that the investments which are about to be poured for the preparation of the event will give salaries the desired boost.
Similar is the case in the entire Gulf region. Average wages of expats working in GCC countries have decreased with an average of 2%. The study claims that this is partly due to the fact that recruiters are offering lower wages to Asian and Western expatriates. The average salaries of these two expat groups dropped by 4.27% and 6.8%, respectively.
In comparison, Arab expat in the region saw a rise in their average salaries by more than 5.3%. Currently, they are estimated at nearly $11,120 per month, while in 2013 they amounted to less than $10,600.
