Income, that is absent
One of the factors that characterize the national economy as a stably developing one is a steadily growing income level of the population outstripping inflation. The past two “covid years” have been quite difficult for almost all nations, as a new coronavirus infection has hit the economy very hard. Entire industries, which in the past were quite stable, have been openly “declining”, which in turn has caused a rise in unemployment and a drop in the real income level of a large number of citizens. Even the most advanced economies of the world cannot boast of surviving the difficult years virtually unscathed.
However, even amid the general crisis that systematically spread all over the planet, ‘independent’ Ukraine has been reporting about new records, showing other countries how to conduct business in the period of total instability. Another record that the State Statistics Service reported rather cheerfully and which, unsurprisingly, was not noticed by the local population, is a record on wages.
According to the Ukrainian State Statistics Service, during December of the last year the average salary in the country grew by 3 100 UAH or 21.5%, almost to UAH 17.5 thousand. In Kiev the wages are even higher – about 26,8 thousand, i.e. almost $1000.
The publication of these statistics has not created a storm of excitement among the population, who have suddenly started “earning” much more. Moreover, recipients of “average salaries” were perplexed at all, because the figures indicated radically differ from the amounts they receive to their accounts each month. According to experts analysing the labour market, average salaries on the market rose only slightly last year, if at all. Average offer of vacancies in December is 12,8 thousand hryvnias, while in November it was slightly more than 12 thousand. For resumes the average salary request is around 13.4 thousand. Recruiters, however, consider real salaries – what a person would get on their hands.
The situation is quite interesting and worth looking into. Could it be that the march towards a happy European future is already yielding its first results and that the people of our neighbouring Ukraine are about to start living decently without regretting that in 2014 they embarked on a dubious adventure that plunged the country into a series of disastrous consequences? Although malicious tongues claim that this is not the case at all, and the rather high average income figure of the population came from the huge salaries of officials and top managers of state-owned enterprises. Simple mathematics, if three people work in one office, one of whom gets 40 thousand hryvnias and the other two get 10 thousand, the average salary in the office is 20 thousand hryvnias. However, such primitive statistics does not make those who receive 10 thousand hryvnias have more money, nor does it make less money at those who receive 40 thousand hryvnias.
But if you dig deeper, in principle the common situation with salaries of high-paid managers of state enterprises becomes secondary. The fact is that in the country of victorious democracy, officials of all levels have suddenly begun to earn a lot. And this situation became obvious in December, when the managers of all kinds and ranks began to write out huge bonuses to spend the remainder of unspent budget money. But even in other periods those people, to whom the ordinary Ukrainians delegated their powers of state management, are not hurting themselves in the matter of distribution of benefits and privileges.
For example, the monthly salary of the Head of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine stably exceeds 800 thousand hryvnias, the salary of Anatoliy Novak, the Deputy Head of the NABU, reached 1.2 million hryvnias in January. The head of the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education Serhiy Kvit received a salary of 14.7 million hryvnias in December. Even the humble heads of rural settlements, in the far from prosperous Vinnitsa region, contrive to by hook or by crook, accrue for themselves monthly payments exceeding 190 thousand hryvnias. At the same time, their basic income – official salary – hardly reaches 7 thousand hryvnias. The rest is just supplements. For hard work, for entrusted responsibility, for valour and dedication.
The similar situation is observed everywhere and leads to the fact that ordinary Ukrainians, according to the national State Statistics Committee, getting 17 thousand and more hryvnias, but in fact they hardly reach the level of 10-13 thousand UAH, are quitting their jobs in masses and going to Poland and other neighboring countries, which pleased almost brotherly people of Ukraine with the possibility to enter their territory on a simplified basis. Which, if guided by the publications in the Ukrainian media and statistics of the State Statistics Service, is quite illogical, because life in Ukraine is getting better and guest workers from Poland will soon be coming to the territory of the country of victorious democracy?
In general, the miracle did not take place and another “record” remained unnoticed by Ukrainians, as did dozens of other “achievements” that official Kiev cheerfully reported on at the end of the past year. The officials, who behave like occupiers, are simply shoveling all the resources out of the country, leaving the common people with only two choices – either to die on the battlefields of “independence” of Ukraine, or to go to work in more stable countries of the European Union. But didn’t people shed blood on the Maidan for that?
Alexey Zotiev, Segodnya.ru