General Election 2024· Living Wage How to weigh up minimum wage manifesto promises Money talks but the bite is what matters 31 May 2024 by Gavin Kelly and Nye Cominetti and Hannah Slaughter While the principle of there being a minimum wage is, happily, no longer a matter of ideological contention in British politics, its future level is likely to remain a key labour market question in the general election campaign. It matters. First and foremost for the 1.6 million workers who directly rely on it (as well … Continued READ MORE
Labour market enforcement· Labour market Government names and shames 500 firms for illegally under-paying staff – but will it dissuade others from flouting the law? 20 February 2024 by Hannah Slaughter Today the Department for Business and Trade published a list of more than 500 employers who have underpaid the minimum wage, in the latest ‘naming round’ that publicises firms that break the law. Among the list are household names such as Greggs, easyJet, Hamleys and River Island, as well as smaller local businesses from across … Continued READ MORE
Labour market A deep dive into the latest labour market statistics 13 February 2024 by Hannah Slaughter Today marks an important milestone for labour market wonks. After being deprived of a full labour market release since early autumn due to data issues around one of the ONS’ core surveys, this morning we got (almost) the full set of labour market data up to the end of 2023. The release sheds light on … Continued READ MORE
Britain isn’t post-work Top of the Charts 19 January 2024 Morning all, Apology in straight away. This was going to be a normal TOTCs, but I got sufficiently annoyed about a BBC headline this week that you’ve got a TOTCs special on… the idea that we’re about to be, or should be, post-work. “AI to hit 40% of jobs and worsen inequality, IMF says” it … Continued READ MORE
Labour market The labour market is cooling but pay growth remains strong New ONS labour market statistics show the biggest employment fall on record outside of a recession 12 September 2023 by Hannah Slaughter This morning’s labour market statistics show that the labour market is starting to cool, with the biggest employment fall on record outside of a recession. But this is not yet feeding through into wages, which grew at record high rates. And while wage growth impacts both workers and (indirectly) the wider economy, this month’s pay … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Pay Good news in the latest labour market data for the Bank and the Chancellor, but bad news for the general public 14 February 2023 by Hannah Slaughter and Nye Cominetti This morning’s labour market stats bring good news and bad news. An uptick in workforce participation is good news for everyone, while signs of weakening pay pressure might ease the Bank of England’s inflation concerns. But a wider cooling of demand (seen in falling vacancies, and rising unemployment and redundancies) don’t bode well for workers. … Continued READ MORE
Is the UK labour market at a crossroads? This latest ONS labour market statistics, covering November 2022, show a mixed picture 17 January 2023 by Hannah Slaughter This morning’s labour market statistics, covering November 2022, show a mixed picture. On the one hand, high levels of vacancies and low unemployment mean that the labour market remains tight. But there are early signs that this may not last much longer – vacancies have fallen markedly over the past few months, while redundancies are … Continued READ MORE
Labour market The labour market is making history for the wrong reasons 16 August 2022 by Nye Cominetti and Hannah Slaughter The backdrop to today’s labour market data has been discussion around the increasingly concerning picture for the winter, with expectations of future increases in the energy price cap continuing to ratchet upwards. But today’s data reminds us that when it comes to pay at least, workers are already facing very tough conditions, even before the … Continued READ MORE
The jobs market is healthy and doesn’t have a temperature, but pay packets are shrinking not surging 14 December 2021 by Hannah Slaughter Today’s labour market stats release should have marked a turning point in the post-pandemic labour market, as furlough came to an end and the economy adjusted to a period without restrictions. Instead, the data out this morning – which covers October and November – covers two months of relative normality between the end of furlough … Continued READ MORE
Covid-19· Labour market Any further questions? From 'The Full Monty: Facing up to the scale of the COVID-19 jobs crisis' 29 June 2020 by Hannah Slaughter We often have more questions submitted for our event Q&A sessions than we’re able to answer. Where this is the case, we’ll endeavour to respond to a selection of the most interesting or most representative questions that went unanswered. The questions below were submitted to our panel for the event The Full Monty: Facing up … Continued READ MORE
Covid-19· Labour market Five things we’ve learned from today’s labour market data 19 May 2020 by Hannah Slaughter and Nye Cominetti This morning the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the first major set of labour market data that covers the lockdown period, with data from April on vacancies, claimant unemployment, and employee jobs. Of course, the scale of the crisis has been clear for some time in other data – including Universal Credit claims and … Continued READ MORE
A slowing economy is starting to feed through into the labour market 12 November 2019 by Hannah Slaughter We’re starting to see signs that the slowing economy may now be feeding through to the labour market. Even as GDP growth has faltered in recent months, and with Brexit uncertainty ramped up and productivity stagnant, the labour market had remained strong. The employment rate had reached a record high, with pay growth improving. And … Continued READ MORE
