Average monthly net salaries in Europe
The central European, former communist, countries, have been growing steadily and with their very low unemployment rates. They already surpass Greece and Portugal and are catching up with Spain.
Without the Soviet occupation, which imposed those horrible communist regimes on them, they would always have been as prosperous as western Europe.
It all started with the catastrophic first world war, which was probably the most idiotic war in history. A war between cousins...
NB: The value for Switzerland should probably be in CHF, so about 6000 Euros. Easily twice the German average.