Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals that the average UK full-time worker earned nearly £35,000 in April, a 5.8% increase from the previous year. However, wage increases varied by job, with travel agents experiencing a 21% increase and sport coaches seeing the largest earnings decrease. Despite these pay increases, most workers saw their wages rise by less than inflation, which resulted in a 1.9% decline in real terms and further exacerbated the cost of living squeeze.
The salary data was drawn from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings release, and is based on gross annual pay for full-time workers in each occupation group for the year to April 2023. The ONS classification of occupations was used to group related jobs together, and median wages for the middle-ranking employee were reported. In addition, wages from April 2022 were adjusted to reflect inflation, or the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers’ housing costs, to yield the annual change in real terms.
The report offers granular information on wages that extends beyond the monthly labour statistics published by the ONS. However, it is not the most up-to-date report and further analyses will be required to find more current figures on the job market. Employees can use the lookup table to compare their average pay, changes from the previous year, and whether their wages outpaced inflation.
The data reinforces the ongoing challenges of the cost of living squeeze, with fewer workers experiencing meaningful wage increases. Given the continued volatility and unpredictability of the pandemic, it remains to be seen what effects this will have on wages and employment more broadly
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