||adult. As net wage data for 2023 are not yet available, a comparison using 2022 data indicates that the value of the<br>minimum consumption basket exceeds the net salary at the economy level (3,801 RON) in 2022, except for<br>Bucharest and Cluj, all other NUTS 3 regions had an average net wage lower than the value of the consumption<br>basket.|
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|c)|**Prices for the goods included in the basket were not provided by the National Institute of Statistics. Still,**<br>**they were collected in the five cities from supermarkets and markets (for food, household, and personal**<br>**hygiene products).**Prices collected from the five cities were also used for other products and services (housing,<br>transportation, cultural activities, etc.).|
|d) <br>e)<br>f)|**The periodic update of the minimum consumption basket for a decent living does not involve indexing**<br>**with the inflation rate, as it is a consumption basket with different weights compared to the standard**<br>**basket considered by the National Institute of Statistics for calculating the Consumer Price Index.**<br>Updating the minimum consumption basket is complex and needs to be more predictable. The**National Institute**<br>**of Statistics**does not provide price indices by categories of goods with this granularity. Additionally, other<br>methods of indexing are applied to specific expense categories.<br>**Equivalence Scales.**For calculating the value of the consumption basket for families other than the reference<br>one, higher equivalence scales than those used by the OECD and the European Commission were used, leading<br>to a potential overestimation of the consumption basket.<br>**Significant discrepancies exist between this estimate and the estimate presented in this paper.**The reason<br>for the discrepancy is probably the fact that the “decent” wage is more than the “living” wage. The basket estimated<br>by FES includes, for example, savings close to 10% of total income, vacation, and relatively high spending on<br>clothing, education, and culture. While these estimates may measure a “decent life,” this basket offers a significantly<br>higher standard of living than the usual living wage definition. In our case, the estimate of the corresponding<br>minimum wage is also inflated by the fact that only one of two adults works full-time.|

**Our main finding, indicating a positive gap between the net statutory minimum wages and the living wage estimate, aligns with earlier assessments.** Fabo and Belli (2017) show that the minimum wage adequately encompasses the living wage in the core EU countries when using data from the Wage Indicator Foundation (WI). However, this does not apply to Eastern European countries (Visegrad countries, Bulgaria, and Romania), where the minimum wage falls 10%–60% short of covering even the lower living wage threshold. Further assessments are needed to understand the drivers of this gap.

**Finally, the consumption basket can also serve as a baseline to evaluate the adequacy of other social benefits and pensions in addition to the minimum wage.** Beyond its primary role in determining the living costs to produce a benchmark for minimum wage settings, the consumption basket can also be a reference point for assessing the adequacy of various social benefits and pensions. By utilizing the consumption basket as a baseline, policymakers can evaluate the adequacy of other forms of social support in meeting the basic needs and expenses of individuals and households. This broader assessment helps ensure that the minimum wage, other social benefits, and pensions align with the living costs, offering a more comprehensive understanding of their adequacy and effectiveness in supporting individuals and families.

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