Dutch workers covered by centrally-negotiated pay talks saw their salaries rise by an average of 1.9% last year, the national statistics office CBS said on Thursday.

Civil service pay, which had been frozen for several years as a crisis measure, rose 3.4% while private sector wages were up 1.7% on average.

The biggest sector rise – 2.8% – was paid to construction workers.  Bottom of the list was the financial service sector, where salaries rose just 0.9%.

Economists and the Dutch central bank have recently called for higher wages now companies are becoming more profitable. The FNV trade union federation is campaigning for pay rises of 2.55 to 3% this year.