Teachers' and doctors' wages lowered across Kazakhstan
In the second quarter of 2025, Kazakhstan's labor market continues to grapple with persistent issues, including stagnant real wages, particularly in the public sectors of education and healthcare.
Despite a nominal increase in wages in these sectors, the rise in prices has completely offset the increase, leading to a decrease in the purchasing power of workers' incomes. This marks the first instance of zero annual growth in real wages since 2015 in Kazakhstan.
The average nominal wage in the country was 448,600 tenge in Q2 2025, a 11.3% increase from the same period in 2024. However, after adjusting for inflation, the figure remained unchanged.
In education and healthcare, the average monthly wage was 373,800 tenge and 339,600 tenge respectively, but these figures represent a 3.1% decrease in real wages compared to the same period in 2024, adjusted for consumer inflation. Apart from construction, six other economic sectors in Kazakhstan also experienced a decline in real wages.
The construction sector recorded the largest decrease in real wages, with a 10.8% decrease and an average nominal wage of 490,200 tenge.
Several key contributing factors to these labor market problems and wage stagnation include:
- Labor force growth and demographic pressure: An influx of about 360,000 working-age youth entering the labor market annually until 2035 increases job competition and pressure on wages.
- Mismatch and obsolescence of professions: Demand is rising for digital and new economy professions, while many traditional roles, especially in education and healthcare, remain underpaid and are becoming obsolete, limiting wage growth.
- Regional imbalances: Labor surpluses in southern regions and shortages in northern ones create uneven employment opportunities and wage dynamics.
- Shadow economy and informal employment: About 30% of employed people do not contribute to pension systems, and lack of labor standards in sectors including healthcare and education suppress formal wage improvements and benefits.
- Stagnant and uncompetitive wages in public services: Although there is high demand for skilled workers in education and healthcare, wages in these sectors remain uncompetitive, affecting motivation and wage growth.
- Gender wage gaps and occupational segregation: Women, who constitute a large share of education and healthcare workers, face persistent wage disparities due to structural factors, glass ceilings, and traditional gender roles.
- Need for retraining and reforms: The government plans to revise professional standards and modernize education, focusing on digital skills and vocational training to address skill mismatches and wage stagnation, but these reforms are ongoing and lag behind market needs.
Addressing these structural and demographic pressures, regional disparities, large informal employment, uncompetitive public sector wages, and gender-related occupational and wage segregation requires comprehensive reforms in professional standards, education modernization, and formalization of employment.
The Ministry of Labor has highlighted these issues and suggested that the desire for megacities in Kazakhstan may be influenced by labor market problems, underscoring the need for urgent action to address these challenges.
- To combat the persistent issues in Kazakhstan's labor market, such as stagnant real wages, particularly in the public sectors of education and healthcare, comprehensive reforms are needed in areas like professional standards, education modernization, and employment formalization.
- In addition to the construction sector, six other economic sectors in Kazakhstan also experienced a decline in real wages, illustrating the need for urgent action to reduce wage stagnation in various industries.
- A significant challenge in Kazakhstan's labor market is the gender wage gap and occupational segregation, particularly in sectors like education and healthcare, where women face persistent wage disparities and structural barriers.
