Starting out or getting stuck? An analysis of who gets trapped in low paid work—and who escapes

Almost three-quarters of Britain’s workers who were on low pay in 2002 failed to escape from it over the course of the following decade. Both low pay and social mobility are recognised as serious concerns in Britain but much less attention has been given to how easy or hard it is for someone to work their way up the earnings scale. Who gets stuck on low pay and who gets on?

Starting out or getting stuck? gives new insight into how many people stay on low pay and for how long, whether low paid workers are more likely to remain stuck now than in the past and what the differences are between those who are stuck and those who progress.