British wage growth

[maliklynge]

The wages paid to British workers grew at the joint-fastest rate since the summer of 2015 in the three months to July, supporting the Bank of England's contention that a tight labour market is finally pushing up pay.

Average regular pay, which excludes bonuses, rose by 2.9% in the three months to July compared to a year ago, the Office for National Statistics said. The reading came in higher than economists' average expectations, and higher than last month's 2.7% reading.

The increases in pay have accelerated over the past 18 months, as unemployment has fallen steadily. The latest unemployment figures showed the proportion of the labour force out of work remained at 4% in July, the joint-lowest level since the mid-1970s.

 

[TheTallGuy]

The wages paid to British workers grew at the joint-fastest rate since the summer of 2015 in the three months to July, supporting the Bank of England's contention that a tight labour market is finally pushing up pay.

Average regular pay, which excludes bonuses, rose by 2.9% in the three months to July compared to a year ago, the Office for National Statistics said. The reading came in higher than economists' average expectations, and higher than last month's 2.7% reading.

The increases in pay have accelerated over the past 18 months, as unemployment has fallen steadily. The latest unemployment figures showed the proportion of the labour force out of work remained at 4% in July, the joint-lowest level since the mid-1970s.

But what those figures don't show is the amount of folk at the bottom of the pile on or near minimum wage with part time or zero hour contracts & it's those closer to the top of the pile that are pushing the averages up. The figures also don't take proper account of those in the "gig economy" or all those self employed types delivering for amazon etc.