TUC 'Britain Needs a Pay Rise'

TUC

Workers in the North East would be over £55 a week better off if real wage growth had remained at its pre-recession rate, according to new analysis published by the TUC.

The analysis shows that even using the government’s preferred inflation measure (the consumer prices index), which excludes housing costs, workers in the region would be earning £56.70 a week more had pay had continued to rise at 1.9 per cent per year after the crash

The TUC says the analysis shows how much working people’s living standards suffered during the recession and how pay has failed to recover during the recovery.This is the seventh year that average weekly earnings have been falling – the longest period since records began in the 1850s.

The report alo explained:

In the North East workers would be nearly £3,000 a year better off had wage growth remained at its modest pre-recession rate.Instead, pay has fallen off a cliff and shows little sign of recovering any time soon. Ordinary households are not sharing in the recovery and are facing their seventh consecutive year of real wage cuts.People are increasingly being forced to use their credit cards and dwindling savings to make ends meet, and unless the North East gets a pay rise soon the region’s personal debt problem will get even worse

The TUC are continuing to pursue their Britain Needs a Pay Rise campaign. Low wages means less demand in the economy and that means fewr job opportunities. 

The Northern TUC’s Fair Pay and Living Wage Seminar on the 6th November (see events) will include a high quality set of workshops and speakers from the public, private and voluntary sector along with those working in economic development, financial inclusion and child poverty.

If you want to know more about why Britain Needs A Pay Rise further details can be found at http://www.tuc.org.uk/northernBeth FarhatNorthern TUC Regional Secretary