Working Life Barometer in the Baltic Countries 2002 (pdf) - mol.fi

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In Estonia and Latvia the reorganised workplaces have, for their part, increased
their relative share of the workers. In Lithuania, the development has
clearly been the opposite. In 1998 – 2002, the share of the new workplaces has
clearly grown the most in Lithuania, where earlier they were far fewer in
number than in the other two countries. In consequence, the proportion working
at new companies in all three countries is now almost the same, a little
over 40 per cent.
It was seen above that in all three countries, the average salary level at new
workplaces had definitely dropped. The new workplaces have evidently been
established more in the low-paid sectors. Still in 1998, the salary level at the
new workplaces was higher than at the reorganised and old workplaces. In
three years, the situation has taken an opposite turn.
CONNECTION BETWEEN UNIONISATION AND
SALARY LEVEL
Below, the connection between unionisation and salary level in Estonia, Latvia
and Lithuania is examined. Is the average salary level higher for those workers
who belong to a trade union? And does the making of collective agreements
bear any relation to the salary level?
Still in 1998, the median salary of the unionised workers (i.e. those belonging
to a trade union) was smaller than that of the non-unionised in Estonia, and
even in Latvia it was only equally as great as the non-unionised workers' salary.
The change during the three years has been fairly great. In 2002 in Latvia
and Lithuania, those who belonged to trade unions received a clearly better
salary than those who did not. Even in Estonia, the gap between the non-unionised
and the unionised has disappeared.
With the aid of standard deviation, an approximate picture of the salary variation
can be obtained. In Estonia and Lithuania, the salaries of workers who are
not union members definitely vary more than those of the union members. In
Latvia in 2002, the situation has changed so that the variation is greater for the
unionised. Salary differences in Latvia have grown as a general rule, as seen
above.