Wage

The remuneration is in labor power, usually an amount of money owed ​​by an employer to a worker because of a labor contract between the two closed. Pay is a nominalized form of " pay for ", which means as much as " reward ". Within Switzerland, otherwise rare, the term salary or remuneration for private monetary compensation is used.

The tax term wages often synonymous used means all revenue accruing to an employee from employment (§ 2 LStDV ). Of social security, part of the pay all ongoing or recurring income from employment, regardless of whether a legal claim to the revenues is the name under which or in what form they are made and whether they are obtained directly from the employment or in connection with it (§ 14 paragraph 1 sentence 1 SGB IV).

Historically and commonly two forms of pay can be distinguished:

• The salary of an employee
• The wage of a worker.

In legislation and collective agreements, this distinction is often abandoned, and it is only spoken by the fee. Terms such as labor costs or continued pay in case of illness (now consequently: Entgeltfortzahlung after Entgeltfortzahlungsgesetz ) refer nevertheless always on both forms of remuneration ( wage or salary ).

• 8.1 Marxist conceptions of the content of the wages
• 8.2 Marxist views on the level of wages
• 8.3 Other Alternatives

Determining the level of charges

According to the principle of freedom of contract, the amount of the remuneration of the employee in the employment contract is freely negotiated (where no statutory minimum wage exists). The market situation, through the expertise of the employee, the occupational exposure, the responsibility he bears, and the working conditions under which he works plays (see: Differentiation of charges and job evaluation ) will be affected, a crucial role. Likewise, basic considerations on pay levels may play a role (eg: the tension between the minimum wage and efficiency wages).

The structural inferiority of the individual worker against the employer led with unrestricted freedom of contract to extreme low wages. This led to the establishment of trade unions and the enforcement of collective agreements on minimum wages ( collective agreements ). These are basically effective only for union members, but may act by generally binding declaration as a statutory minimum wage.

Where the remuneration is not the usual traffic compensation, but the fee is about 1/3 below the ordinary, the compensation clause is unconscionable within the meaning of. § 138 BGB and therefore void. Instead of the void remuneration agreement then takes the usual remuneration. Criminal law, the offense of usury § 291 paragraph 1 sentence 1 No. 3 of the Criminal Code must be met.

If no agreement has been reached on the level of charges, then the level of remuneration, Section 612 determined by the so-called " tax " § 2 of the Civil Code, in the absence of taxes after the usual traffic remuneration in the area of employment contract.

However, at least for working conditions in the scope of collective agreements form agreed in the collective wage agreements remuneration, the minimum fee, which may not be exceeded for union members, even if the employer is bound tariff.

Formerly widespread, pay determination systems are often used gender-specific, such as the application of light wage groups particularly for women, are now inadmissible for violating prohibitions against discrimination. In Germany, women earn on average 23% less than their male counterparts. This so-called gender pay gap is due to about two-thirds to different jobs and skills; after adjusting for these factors, remains a difference of 8%. In the new Länder, the discrepancy is significantly lower with a total of 6%. Large differences also exist between rural areas with 33 % and major cities with 12 % income difference. Also in Austria, shows up with 22 % difference in salary between men and women a similar picture.

Easy -income groups also play a role in the discussion of a low-wage segment, which will serve the inclusion poorly trained workers into the labor market.

The amount of wages, unless they are agreed in collective agreements is documented in public tariff registers that everyone can see. The Federal Ministry of Economics and Labour and all states engage in collective Register. In the provinces, the labor or social ministries are generally responsible.

In case of temporary incapacity employees and workers will be granted continued pay.

Taxes and social security

The gross earnings ( gross pay, gross income or gross salary ) represents the total agreed amount of compensation dar. After deduction of various amounts resulting net pay, which is paid to the employee, it is therefore available to defray his living available. The employer must withhold these amounts by law and paid over to the competent authorities:

• Taxes to the tax office ( tax) Payroll tax ( this is an income tax advance)
• Solidarity surcharge ( additional levy for income tax )
• If applicable, church tax

• Contribution to the statutory pension scheme (2013: 9.45%; 2014: expected to be 9.2%)
• Contribution to public health insurance ( 2013: 8.20%; 2014: 8.20% )
• Contribution to the statutory unemployment (2013: 1.50%; 2014: 1.50% )
• Contribution to the statutory long-term care (2013: 1.025 % with child, 1.275 % without children ( in Saxony: 1.525 % bzw.1.775 %), 2014: unchanged)

The employer has to pay in addition to the gross salary or the employer's contributions to social security contributions. Contributions to the statutory accident insurance must bear alone the employer. Furthermore, the employer has to bear (SGB III § 358), the so-called allocation U2 to finance the reimbursement of expenses for payment of the grant to maternity pay and pay to pregnant women in employment prohibitions (§ 7 of expenses Compensation Act ) and the apportionment U3 to finance the insolvency fund. Establishments with not more than 30 workers to pay an additional levy the U1 to finance the reimbursement of expenses for the continued payment of wages to employees in the event of sick leave. The wage cost is thus approximately 20-25 % on the gross salary.

In construction companies after the Baubetriebe Regulation employers and employees must work together in addition a winter employment allocation wear ( § 354 SGB III)

In the national accounts the gross wage or salary shall be increased by the employers' social contributions, so as to come to the compensation of employees.

Accounting basis

The pay can be agreed and paid by different criteria.

• Salary: For managing and higher executives often an annual salary is agreed, however, with pro-rata monthly payouts. To have available an annual salary in the contract is more a matter of prestige as a legal or practical difference in the way accounting for an agreed monthly salary.
• Monthly means (eg salary): It is an amount for a whole month agreed, regardless of the length of the month and the number of Sundays and holidays. This payment method is nowadays the "normal case " dar. For example, all public employees solely on monthly salaries paid ( according to § 15 TVöD ).
• Hourly billing ( hourly wage ): The remuneration is charged according to the hours actually worked. Also, holiday pay or holiday pay by the hour offset. The payout is now monthly.
• As verstetigter monthly salary on the basis of a predetermined number of hours regardless of the number of hours actually worked at the same time offsetting of plus or minus hours on a working time account.
• Piece or piece rate: The charge depends on the quantities completed. Leave and public holidays are paid with an average.
• Vacation pay: This type has very similar self-employment, as a whole project will be paid regardless of the duration of work for a total amount.
• Commission remuneration: paid employment in trade representatives usually in addition to a base salary ( base salary ) is paid a certain percentage of the turnover. However, it is usually better for a company, not only in sales but also the contribution margin, which was generated by sales to include in the amount of commission with. Thus the agent is indirectly stopped the header conditions did not improve for the benefit of customers in order to generate higher sales.
• Turnover -dependent remuneration: Here is a portion of the revenue is paid as a fee (eg taxi driver).

Usually, a salary is a constant amount over the months, while wages are calculated on an hourly basis and therefore varies the monthly payment.

Special components of remuneration

To the basic salary or allowances may like commissions with field staff or special payments such as Christmas bonuses or vacation pay coming. Another special ingredient can cash benefits and benefits in kind to be or supplements, such as a surcharge for Sundays, holidays and night work. In addition, profit-related bonuses can be agreed upon, which are calculated at public companies, for example, on the basis of the respective amount of the dividend.

Special forms of fee calculation

Frequently a consistent monthly payment is agreed. The fee can also be calculated using different bases. Accordingly, there is the typical time wage and performance pay types chord and premium pay.

Time wage: With this type of calculation is only the hours worked by the benchmark for the remuneration.

Piecework: Here the motto is " the higher the performance, the higher the wage "; the payment is made according to the number -built parts, regardless of the time required for this (hence " piece rate " called ).

Wage premiums include: the increasing automation of the production process of the piece rate continues to lose its meaning. The computer controlled production machines take over a large part of the work. In place of the piece rate enters the wage premium. The premium wage taken into account especially benefits of a qualitative nature, he will be paid if

• Default times are exceeded,
• The permissible rejection rate is exceeded,
• The resources used are optimally utilized and thereby reduce waiting times,
• It is possible to save energy or materials.

For this, a normal power ( would be better to say, a normal performance ) are applied. Thus, the enterprise pays a basic wage ( either in milliseconds or as a piece rate ) and performance-based payments. However, this compensation will not like the chord to the employee fully benefit; rather it is divided between the company and the employee. The proportion of the employee is called premium.

Due to the charge

The fee is usually ( in Germany according to § 614 BGB) in hindsight - ie when the monthly salary at the month end - to be paid. Uncommon, but increasingly rare, can be found in contracts or collective agreements other maturity periods, such as in the middle of the month.

Business and Economics viewing

Economic classification

From theoretical economic consideration is the pay the price for the provision of labor power in the labor market. There encounter each labor supply and labor demand.

In particular, with the plural wages refers to the sum of all cash flows of an economy that flow at the end of work for their work, will therefore be paid to the production factor labor. In the national accounts, gross wages and salaries are compensation of employees, net of employers' contributions to social security. If we subtract the gross wages and salaries, workers' contributions to social security and payroll taxes from, then you get the net wages and salaries.

Furthermore, a distinction is made between actual earnings and the standard wage. The effective wage differs from the standard wage by voluntary extra work for the employers to overtime pay, due to lower payments on short-time working, etc. The wage drift is the difference between the growth rates of the average effective wage and the average wage rate. It is regarded as economic indicator.

Within the microeconomics of the reservation wage is the minimum salary to which an employee is still just ready to offer his labor power.

The real wage is in the economics of wage that corresponds to the actual purchasing power, that is, the quantity of goods that can actually be purchased at a given cost of living with the nominal wage. The real wage is closely related to the standard of living.

Business Classification

In business administration related applies to a company or product similar, in which case (in terms of wages for employees) usually make up the salaries as overhead costs a fraction of the total labor costs. From the perspective of the recipient of salary, it's part of his income.

Alternative theories of wages and criticism of wages

Marxist views on the content of wages

" Work is the substance, and the immanent measure of value, but they themselves have no value. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 559 )

Karl Marx represents a labor theory of value, according to the only custom work can be value-adding. When using this machine divest the energy stored in them as they are generated by human labor for wear. By " production detour" via a machine, there is a more efficient use of labor. Marx explains the wages as the price of labor power. This results in doubt of the cost required for its reproduction. The wage-worker just does not sell his work to the contractor. This is impossible for him because his work is not a commodity outside of it. At the time of conclusion of the employment contract exists, the work which he sold, not yet:

"To be sold as a commodity on the market, the work would have to exist in any case before they are sold. Could the workers but give her an independent existence, he would sell goods and not work. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 558 )

Rather, the workers arises by contract for an agreed period of time under the command of the entrepreneur:

" What the owner of money on the goods market confronts directly, is not the work, but the workers in fact. What the latter sells is his labor power. As soon as his labor actually begins, it has already ceased to belong to him, so it can no longer be sold by him. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 558 )

In the period in which the contractor, the worker has freely, he keeps him on to produce as many goods for him. The difference between the value of the goods to the overspent wages, the more value is the profit of the entrepreneur dar. The profit has its reason, therefore. Especially in the deviation of the wage from the value of the work performed

Marxist views on the level of wages

"The value of labor-power, equal to the value of every other commodity, is determined necessary by the production, consequently also the reproduction, of this specific article working. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 184 )

This reproduction cost of a worker are not easy to determine. In addition to close -lying as the diet also, for example, live, relax and rearing of children are to be reported to able-bodied individuals. A purely economic solution would for example make a statement when a medical treatment is cheaper than the rearing of a child as a successor to the untreated deceased.

Marx must therefore remain vague when he writes: "The value of labor power is determined by the value of the habitually necessary food of the average worker. The mass of these foods, although their form may change, is given in a certain epoch of a given society and should therefore be treated as a constant quantity. What changes is the value of this mass. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 542 )

The fact that you can buy in a capitalist society labor force, assumed that the wage reproduced not only individual workers but the whole class:

" The value of labor power was determined not only by the conservation of the individual adult laborer, but by the time required for maintenance of the worker's family working. By the machinery throws all the members of the working-class family on the labor market, it distributes the value of labor-power of man over his whole family. They therefore canceled his labor. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 417 )

In contrast to other goods, the commodity labor-power contains additional provisions, as it is the only commodity that is equipped with a will. This will have to agree to do work, which implies that the wage financed him his basic needs. These consist not only in the bare existence, but include, depending on the nation and culture prior specific needs, as they relate to a habitual level of wages, which was won by previous generations of workers:

" On the other hand, the scope of so-called essential needs, such as the nature of their satisfaction, itself a product of history and therefore depends largely on the stage of civilization of a country, including largely on the conditions under which, and therefore what habits and life claims, the class the free laborers has been formed. In contrast to the other goods thus determining the value of labor-power contains a historical and moral element. " (K. Marx, Capital I, MEW 23, 185 )

Other alternatives

Another idea for the current issue of Work and Income is an unconditional basic income. It is a government, with financial support care to which can be further to deserve it. It has nothing to do with Marxism, but is based on the assertion that it is possible in the industrial age, by the use of machines to completely separate the work on income.

The Christian social teaching since Rerum Novarum knows the " fair wage ". The amount of this salary must a " frugal, honest workers," the " living " allow (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC 2434 ).

Linguistic meaning and accruals

Colloquially, wages, salary, remuneration, salary, remuneration and compensation are often used interchangeably. Even today, one understands high language only and colloquially usually in " salary" a consistent monthly pay, often paid even in advance, for during a pay period, which is calculated on an hourly basis and therefore fluctuates each month, is called " wage ". Colloquially we speak almost exclusively from a " hourly wage ", but in practice they never heard of a " Schedule Payment ". Previously, there was also a daily wage ( and the " day laborers ", mainly for unskilled labor in agriculture ), and a " week's pay " ( on an hourly basis calculated billing period for workers with cash every Friday at the end of work; common until the mid-20th century ).

Besides wages are a number of other terms in use:

• ( Price for the service of a civil servant under the applicable maintenance principle there ) salary or remuneration
• Brokerage fee (for brokers)
• Diets (Members of the Bundestag or Parliament of a country, such as a parliament, a House of Representatives or citizenship )
• Gage ( Artist )
• Fees ( price for the work of one (1 ) lawyer or notary, and (2 ) professional architect or engineer in accordance with the relevant fee schedule )
• Heuer ( wages of a seaman )
• Fee (price for the work of a freelancer, educators, writers, expert, doctor or architect )
• Performance-based compensation ( variable salary, which is tied to performance components)
• Minimum wage
• Commission ( price for the work of an independent commercial agent )
• Sold ( Cost of the work of military personnel or civilian service ends )
• Bonus (company earnings-related additional payment )

No remuneration are:

• Expense allowance (reimbursement of expenses)
• Income ( income from capital investment )
• Imputed remuneration (will not be paid but only imputed into account in cost accounting, when a businessman working in his own company )