What's the difference between a salary and a wage

[BuckingFrolics]

I always thought they were the same thing but different terminology- am I wrong?

I guess salary is if you are on an annual salary and wage is if you are paid by the hour?

A salary is a fixed figure you get at the end of every month. A wage is what you earn depending on the hours you work. Or that's what I think, anyway. That's why its called the national minimum wage, not salary.

Yes wage depends on your hours, salary is your yearly no matter how many hours you work.

Wages are generally paid per hour and more often for people who work different number of hours per week/month and will vary because of this.

Salary means you will be earning exactly the same every month. (Usually because of a fixed set of hours, though not always).

I was going to say exactly the same as LittleCandle

Yes littlecandle has summed it up perfectly.

Salary you're generally salaried for a year and know what you are going to get. A wage is fluid you may or may not get an amount, and I would also guess at it being cash in hand.

The traditional difference is that a wage is directly linked to hours worked but salary isn't. Longer you work, the more wages you get.
Not so with a salary. These days the more practical difference is a wage is paid weekly and a salary monthly (or quarterly in some places).

I used to get a wage, I got paid hourly. so if I worked 80 hours I got paid for 80 hours.
Now Im on salary. i get paid the same no matter if I work 40 hours a week or 80
I preferred a wage to be honest

Agree with pp a wage us when you have an hourly rate- submit timesheets etc. - a salary is when you are paid equal amount per pay period to match your contacted hours

Omg I didn't know that! Thank you - I will apologise to my DD as I gave her a totally wrong definition. Thank you folks.

I don't agree. Yes a salary is an annual figure paid monthly. A wage otoh is quite simply what you are paid for work, so is wider and would include salary but also hourly or weekly. A wage isn't necessarily hourly pay.

The distinction is getting less though.

In a lot of industrial settings, where you would traditionally have expected weekly pay calculated by the hour, you now get average hours each month, with an element of overtime added in on a 4 or 5 week basis - so everyone is 'monthly paid'

Salary comes from ancient history where people were paid in salt (which was expensive)

Do people really get paid quarterly?!

No, I was meaning overtime is calculated on the basis of 4 weeks one month, 4 weeks the next, and then 5 weeks after that - perhaps with a cut off about a week before payday

A wage is fluid you may or may not get an amount, and I would also guess at it being cash in hand.

Eh? Where did you get the cash in hand bit from?!

So.when I was a nurse I had a set amount I was supposed to earn every month/year,but the sctual.amounts varied as I got extra for working unsocial hrs was this a wage or a salary we used to get what we called wage slips