Georgia’s job market improves with rising wages and fewer low earners
Nearly one million people in Georgia received a salary in September, up almost five percent from the previous month, signaling steady job growth despite persistent unemployment.
According to data compiled by the research group PMCG, 985,975 people received a monthly salary in September 2025. That represents a 4.9 percent increase from August and a 2.6 percent rise compared to September last year.
Economist Soso Archvadze welcomed the rise, noting that even a one-percent increase signals tens of thousands of new jobs. He said the trend indicates both more people being hired and an overall growth in salaries.
“It is clear that the process is positive,” Archvadze told Rezonansi. “The number of people receiving salaries is rising, and their pay levels are also improving.”
He explained that a one-percent increase means roughly ten thousand more people have guaranteed employment, which in turn improves the livelihoods of around 30,000 to 40,000 Georgians when family members are included. He added that the tax authority’s reports also show a decrease in the number of low-income earners, suggesting a general rise in living standards.
Archvadze said the trend could soon push Georgia across an important threshold. “If this pace continues, by early next year we will reach the symbolic mark of one million salaried employees,” he said. “We are very close to crossing that line.”
Official statistics show that the share of people earning less than 600 lari per month fell to 12.5 percent in September, one percentage point lower than in August and three points lower than a year earlier. At the same time, the proportion of high-income earners, those making 2,400 lari or more, increased to 33.6 percent, up half a point from August and 5.6 points from last September.
Still, not everyone is equally enthusiastic about the trend. Economist Merab Janiashvili agrees that more salaried workers are welcome but urges a closer look at which sectors are driving the growth.
“It is better to examine the numbers on an annual basis,” Janiashvili said. “The 2.6 percent yearly increase is good news, but it matters which industries are contributing to this improvement.”
He pointed to the information technology sector as one area that has grown sharply in recent years, noting that much of the increase comes from foreigners working in Georgia, particularly Russians, Belarusians, and Ukrainians who relocated after the 2022 war in Ukraine.
“We’ve seen 200 to 300 percent growth in the IT sector,” he said. “That has certainly boosted the economy, but at the same time, many of these workers are exempt from taxes and contribute little in the way of social payments. So it is not easy to say whether this is entirely beneficial for the country’s economy.”
Janiashvili added that while Georgia’s overall growth rate remains strong, there are concerns about rising food prices and high levels of emigration. He emphasized that the impact of job growth depends on which sectors expand and which contract.
“For example, if the increase is in agriculture, where wages are lowest, the overall effect is limited,” he said. “But if it comes from construction, the multiplier effect spreads across the economy, and that is clearly beneficial.”
He also noted that inflation plays a role in making average wages appear higher than before. “Five years ago, 600 lari was considered a decent salary,” he said. “Now, its real value has fallen sharply. The fact that fewer people earn under 600 lari does not necessarily mean their situation has improved. Many are roughly where they were before.”
Georgia’s job market has shown steady improvement since the pandemic years, supported by economic growth above the regional average and an inflow of foreign professionals. Analysts the paper spoke to think the overall decline in low-income earners and the expansion of the middle-income group could mark a shift toward a more stable economy.
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