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Eastern European MEPs To Earn Less than Secretaries

April 22, 2004

A Hungarian, Slovakian or Latvian member of the European Parliament could earn one-third less than an experienced Brussels administrative secretary after enlargement.

https://p.dw.com/p/4wHV

A Hungarian, Slovakian or Latvian member of the European Parliament could earn one-third less than an experienced administrative secretary after enlargement, according to French daily Le Monde. Members of the European Parliament are paid the equivalent salary to members of parliament in their home country, which leads to large discrepancies between salaries. An Italian MEP earns €11,000 per month, whereas a Hungarian will earn €761, a Slovak €888 per month and a Latvian €980 per month. In contrast, an administrative secretary at the end of his or her career in Brussels earns €3,500. This situation is the result of a failure by the council of ministers to agree on equal pay for MEPs in January. The European Parliament proposed that each MEP receive just over €9,000 per month, regardless of nationality, but member states, led by Germany, voted against the plan. (EUobserver.com)