Budgets & fiscal events· Labour market· Low pay Never mind the end of austerity, what about the end of low pay? 2 November 2018 by Conor D’Arcy While post-Budget debates on austerity and tax cuts rumble on, one clear living standards win on Monday was an increase in the National Living Wage (NLW). But beyond announcing the rate for next year, the government also used the Budget to set out a bold new aspiration that could have major implications: ending low pay. … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Labour market· Pay Wage growth, low pay and falling hours: breaking down this year’s ASHE figures 25 October 2018 by Conor D’Arcy For labour market wonks, ‘ASHE day’ is like your birthday and Christmas rolled into one. Each year around this time, the ONS publishes a plethora of spreadsheets packed to the brim with data on how wages have performed over the last year. While there are definitely some pleasant surprises in this year’s figures, there are … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Skills Alternative paths to success? The jobs landscape facing young non-graduates today 18 September 2018 by Conor D’Arcy and Kathleen Henehan From photos of jumping A level students to guides to freshers’ week, at this time of year it can feel like university is the only route taken by teenagers. But in fact, fewer than half of young people follow this seemingly well-trodden path at 18. And, as this morning’s ONS publication about non-graduates’ employment patterns … Continued READ MORE
Inequality & poverty· Cities and regions· Wealth & assets Regional wealth inequality: a nation divided 1 September 2018 by Conor D’Arcy On Monday, families across the country will be feeling a mix of excitement, anxiety and relief as kids go back to school (with Scotland having already gone through it). Experiences that unite every corner of the UK feel rarer these days, with talk of division and left-behind places common. Differences between South Shields and South … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Cities and regions Tackling London’s living standards exodus 2 July 2018 by Conor D’Arcy Everyone knows housing is a disaster in London. This is most obvious in the ludicrous prices that properties fetch, but London’s housing problems stretch well beyond having to fork out over half a million pounds for a poky flat in Zone 2. For a start, the way people are housed in London has changed dramatically … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay Tackling the new frontiers of low pay 23 May 2018 by Conor D’Arcy Bad policies get the most attention. Whole books have been written on government interventions that achieved the exact opposite of what they intended, or eventually delivered at miles over budget. That’s why the UK’s minimum wage – effective, popular and cheap – is such a rare thing. The latest evidence confirms the minimum wage’s continued … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay It’ll take more than a higher minimum wage to tackle Britain’s low pay problems 18 May 2018 by Conor D’Arcy As a certain wedding this weekend highlights, some things get more attention than they deserve. When it comes to the world of low pay, all the talk in recent years has been about the National Living Wage. Now of course, this new higher minimum wage for those aged 25 and over is a big deal, … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay Are Sainsbury’s pay proposals a sign of things to come in low-paying sectors? 7 March 2018 by Conor D’Arcy Sainsbury’s has announced proposals to boost its base pay, from £8 per hour to £9.20. This, of course, is important news for the 130,000 people who work there, even if it won’t be welcomed by every one of them, as explored below. But the action Sainsbury’s has taken – and the ways it has outlined … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Pay When it comes to pay ratios, it’s time to choose meaningful medians not meaningless means 14 February 2018 by Conor D’Arcy and Stephen Clarke Back in the dog days of last summer, the Government announced a package of reforms to corporate governance. Among those reforms was the welcome requirement for “listed companies… to publish pay ratios between chief executives and their average UK worker”. On the back of gender pay gap reporting and the commitment to transparency expressed in … Continued READ MORE
Wealth & assets Seven key takeaways on the level, profile and distribution of Britain’s £12.8 trillion of wealth 1 February 2018 by Conor D’Arcy We get monthly updates on pay and authoritative data on household incomes every year. But we have to wait two years for a detailed breakdown of what’s happening to wealth across Britain. Here are seven key takeaways from the latest data published today and what it tells us about changes in the level, profile and … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Low pay· Labour market· Economy and public finances The Autumn Budget 2017 brings worse than hoped for news for the low paid 23 November 2017 by Conor D’Arcy or many people, the big news out of November’s Budget – a massive downgrade in the outlook for productivity growth – will sound a bit abstract. The productivity downgrade has made the Chancellor’s task of balancing the books harder. But its impact on pay – with average annual earnings lowered by £1,000 – mean it’s even … Continued READ MORE
Labour market We need to put the changing world of work back in the spotlight 20 November 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Angst over diminishing attention spans is widespread these days, with the reaction to Twitter’s expansion to 280 characters a case in point. That’s long been true in politics: even the most important of issues need a regular drumbeat to maintain public interest. And it certainly applies to the problems highlighted by the Taylor Review of … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay The latest on low pay 26 October 2017 by Conor D’Arcy To paraphrase the great Yogi Berra, making predictions is hard. That’s especially true of the future of the UK’s labour market. After all, the current combination of record high employment and falling real wages is not a forecast many economists would’ve made even a couple of years ago. But new Annual Survey of Hours and … Continued READ MORE
Labour market We need to address Britain’s Jekyll and Hyde labour market 19 October 2017 by Conor D’Arcy The latest chapter in the British labour market’s Jekyll and Hyde story was published this week. New data on jobs, pay and inflation continued the plot of recent months: an impressively high employment rate twinned with woeful wage growth that’s unable to keep up with prices. But for one group at least, recent developments have … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Scotland A tale of two Scottish economies 5 July 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Imagine two economies. One has just announced strong economic growth, well ahead of the UK. Over time it’s become more productive relative to the UK and unemployment is as low as it’s been for decades. Then imagine another, in which GDP fell two quarters ago sparking fears of recession. In contrast to record employment across … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay What does the minimum wage battle in Seattle mean for the National Living Wage at home? 30 June 2017 by Conor D’Arcy The old joke goes that if you laid all the economists in the world end to end, you still wouldn’t reach a conclusion. A little unfair maybe, but for those keeping track of the argument around two recent – and conflicting – papers on the move to a $15 minimum wage in Seattle, it probably … Continued READ MORE
Wealth & assets· Intergenerational Centre Britain has record levels of wealth – but how much wealthier are its citizens getting? 21 June 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Britain is very good at generating wealth. So much so that it’s now worth upwards of £11 trillion – or more than six times our national income. But we are awful at sharing it out: one in 10 adults own half the nation’s wealth. If not addressed, this could have disastrous consequences for the living … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Labour market· Cities and regions We can work it out? The jobs challenge facing the Liverpool City Region’s mayor 20 April 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Although June’s election will dominate the headlines over the next month and a half, voters in some of England’s biggest cities will go to the polls in two weeks to elect Metro Mayors. Like all the city regions voting on a Mayor, the Liverpool City Region (LCR) – comprised of the local authorities of Halton, … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Low pay· Pay It’s no April Fools’ Day for those on the National Living Wage 1 April 2017 by Conor D’Arcy In a year in which fake news has been a recurring theme, every day has felt a bit like April Fools’ Day. When it comes to the National Living Wage (NLW) however, while there might be some trickery over its name – when is a living wage not a living wage? – there’s no confusion … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Workers on zero hours contracts hits a record high – but have they reached their peak? 3 March 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Workers on zero hours contracts hits a record high – but have they reached their peak? The UK’s labour market has been full of surprises in recent years: record employment has run alongside a record pay squeeze, while the passing away of the ‘job for life’ has been matched by a fall in people moving … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Is self-employment Taylor-made for people with disabilities? 22 February 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Whatever your job, it’s been hard to escape self-employment lately. Whether it’s plumbers, couriers or drivers, the pros and cons of working for yourself have rarely been far from the headlines. The Taylor Review of modern employment practices has kept the flame burning, with its recommendations likely to have consequences for all sorts of workers … Continued READ MORE
Low pay· Labour market· Pay How did firms pay for the big pay rise in 2016? Through productivity and price rises, not job losses 20 December 2016 by Conor D’Arcy 2016 marked the introduction of a big, controversial new player on the political economy scene, whose influence is set to grow and grow over the next four years. No, this isn’t a blog about President-Elect Trump. For millions of low earners across the UK, another development has had an even bigger impact. The National Living … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Cities and regions· Economic growth Revving up the Midlands engine 15 December 2016 by Conor D’Arcy The Midlands Engine could use some oil. That’s the conclusion drawn from this morning’s statistics on regional growth. While 2015 did bring respectable growth to the West Midlands city region with Birmingham and in particular Solihull – the fastest growing local authority in the country – performing well, it also makes the scale of the … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Pay Prepare for a pay squeeze as big as in the 1810s 25 November 2016 by Conor D’Arcy The early 21st century doesn’t have too much in common – thankfully – with the war-torn early 19th century (Although a global superpower was headed by a man of dubious temperament). But Autumn Statement 2016 and the first official projections of the impact of Brexit on the UK’s economy added an unfortunate new connection. If … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Britain’s self-employed workforce is growing – but their earnings have been heading in the other direction 18 October 2016 by Conor D’Arcy When people talk about “the self-employed”, there are a few images that spring to mind. Maybe it’s a white van man, someone running a small business or a freelance consultant. The growth of self-employment over the past decade and a half has been astounding. The 45 per cent growth since the turn of the turn … Continued READ MORE
