Flagship report

Global Wage Report 2020-21: Wages and minimum wages in the time of COVID-19

This ILO flagship report examines the evolution of real wages around the world, giving a unique picture of wage trends globally and by region. The 2020-21 edition analyses the relationship of minimum wages and inequality, as well as the wage impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.

The 2020-21 edition also reviews minimum wage systems across the world and identifies the conditions under which minimum wages can reduce inequality. The report presents comprehensive data on levels of minimum wages, their effectiveness, and the number and characteristics of workers paid at or below the minimum. The report highlights how adequate minimum wages, statutory or negotiated, can play a key role in a human-centred recovery from the crisis.

“The Global Wage Report is central to the analysis of wage trends and labour market developments as well as to the theoretical debate about the role of labour in the economy. It is an indispensable publication for economists, trade unionists, employers and the interested public.” − Hansjörg Herr, Berlin School of Economics and Law.