Labour market Government must adopt a new “post crisis” approach to reach full employment 3 March 2016 2.4 million more Britons in work is the prize for a bold new focus on boosting participation and helping people stay in employment A radical new “post crisis” approach to employment is needed to help 2.4 million more people into work and make the government’s full employment target a reality, according to the final report … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Over five million more hours needed to tackle under-employment of current workers and bring more people into work 29 February 2016 Tackling under-employment holds the key to getting more people into work as it will free up part-time roles for new entrants, according to new analysis published ahead of a major Resolution Foundation investigation into securing full employment published later this week. The analysis will say that securing full employment – now a key government … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Full employment drive can help over a million more over 50s into work 27 February 2016 The government should target encouraging over one million more people over 50 into work by the end of the parliament as part of its full employment drive, the Resolution Foundation says today (Saturday) ahead of a major report into securing full employment. The call comes ahead of the final report next week of the … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Productivity boost key to success of National Living Wage 24 February 2016 Lack of knowledge of how to improve productivity may be a challenge, particularly among smaller firms The need to boost productivity in low-paying sectors and among small employers will be reinforced by the introduction of the new National Living Wage (NLW) in April, though there are huge uncertainties over how businesses can achieve this. This … Continued READ MORE
Housing Number of families in private rented sector has increased by almost a million in last decade 18 February 2016 The long-established decline in homeownership rates in England appeared to pause last year. However rates again fell among families with children, continuing a longer-term shift into the private rented sector, the Resolution Foundation said today (Thursday) in response to the 2014/15 English Housing Survey. The survey showed a welcome pause in the long-term decline … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Welcome jobs boost but pay growth looks set to remain subdued 17 February 2016 Employment growth continues to impress but a slowdown in productivity suggests that pay growth is set to remain subdued, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) in response to the latest ONS labour market statistics. The employment rate reached another record high of 74.1 per cent, driven by increases in both full-time employee jobs and self-employment. … Continued READ MORE
Living standards Household incomes have finally surpassed previous peak 15 February 2016 by Matthew Whittaker and Adam Corlett and David Finch Pace of living standards recovery set to slow over this parliament, with many poorer households losing out altogether Typical household living standards have finally surpassed their previous peak levels but the pace of recovery is set to slow in the coming years, and many low-income households could lose out entirely, according to the Resolution Foundation’s … Continued READ MORE
Housing Owning a home set to become a pipe dream for young workers on modest incomes 13 February 2016 Over-45s now account for three-quarters of all home owners The housing ladder is disappearing for most young working households on modest incomes. For this group home ownership is projected to be approaching just one-in-ten by 2025, according to new analysis to be published next week by the independent Resolution Foundation think tank. While the biggest … Continued READ MORE
Housing Post-crash interest rate cuts have reduced annual mortgage costs by over £22bn 27 January 2016 Outlook for interest rates mean that a different response will be needed in the next downturn Cutting interest rates will have far less impact in the next downturn than the £22-4bn annual boost to households with mortgages they provided following the last one, according to a new report published today (Thursday) by the Resolution Foundation. … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Scotland closes its ‘jobs gap’ as employment rate returns to pre-crisis high 20 January 2016 Welcome news comes 15 months after England’s jobs growth recovered Scotland today closed its ‘jobs gap’ as the employment rate surpassed its mid-2008 level for the first time to hit 74.9 per cent, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) in response to the latest ONS labour market statistics. While welcome, the closure of Scotland’s ‘jobs … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Jobs growth strengthening but pay recovery risks running out of steam 20 January 2016 Welcome news on jobs has seen employment hit a new record high, but real pay growth has fallen to its lowest level since February 2015, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) in response to the latest ONS labour market statistics. The overall employment rate hit another record high (74 per cent), with strong growth … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Scotland on brink of finally closing its seven year long ‘jobs gap’ 20 January 2016 RF warns that stronger employment gains will be needed to boost future pay and living standards Scotland is just 9,000 jobs short of closing its post-crisis ‘jobs gap’ and returning to its mid-2008 employment rate, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) as it publishes a major new report on the Scottish labour market. This milestone … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Pay slowdown set to continue 18 January 2016 Risk that real pay could fall back below 2 per cent for first time since February 2015 Official figures published later this week are expected to show that average wages grew by 1.9-2 per cent in November, representing a further slowdown in the pace of Britain’s pay recovery, according to independent think tank the Resolution … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Scotland has overturned English ‘pay premium’ 17 January 2016 Further employment gains and stronger productivity growth needed to maintain this advantage Scotland has overturned England’s longstanding ‘pay premium’, according to new analysis published today by the independent think-tank the Resolution Foundation. The Foundation’s analysis, part of a major report The State of Working Scotland which will be published later this week, shows that in … Continued READ MORE
Housing Over 400,000 households in London spend more than half their income on housing 6 January 2016 One in four private renters across the capital are ‘housing pinched’ Around 430,000 households across London – containing 990,000 people – spend more than half of their income on housing costs, according to new analysis published today (Wednesday) by the Resolution Foundation. The analysis shows that the proportion of ‘housing pinched’ households in London (those … Continued READ MORE
Labour market National Living Wage to present bigger challenge in lower-paying areas such as Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway 4 January 2016 Nearly one-third of all employees working in Clackmannanshire and Dumfries and Galloway are set to benefit from the new National Living Wage by 2020, according to new analysis published today (Monday) by the Resolution Foundation. The analysis shows that the impact of the National Living Wage (NLW) – the new wage floor of £7.20 an … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Action needed to successfully implement National Living Wage in lower-paying cities such as Sheffield and Birmingham 4 January 2016 Managing major increases in the legal wage floor will be a key first test of new devolved economic leadership arrangements Implementing the new National Living Wage will be toughest in lower-paying city regions such as Sheffield, Nottingham and Birmingham, where over a quarter of all employees will be affected by 2020, according to new analysis … Continued READ MORE
Living standards 26 percentage point gap between best and worst parts of the UK for BAME employment 28 December 2015 Closing sub-regional employment gaps central to reaching full employment and would mean 150,000 more ethnic minority people in work The employment gap between the best and worst performing sub-regions of the UK for all working-aged people is just 11 percentage points, but this more than doubles to 26 percentage points for black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Strong rise in employment but pay rebound tailing off 16 December 2015 Uncertainty over pay prospects in UK highlights differences with US ahead of possible rate rise by Fed Britain’s jobs market continues to show signs of tightening but real wage growth is falling back relatively sharply, highlighting the difference between the UK and US as the Fed considers a rate rise, the Resolution Foundation said … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Pick-up in productivity needed to maintain pay rebound in to 2016 15 December 2015 Return of inflation risks pay growth falling back below trend, following welcome progress this year Having shown signs of rebounding in 2015, real-terms typical pay growth looks set to fall back in 2016 unless there is a significant pick-up in productivity, according to the Resolution Foundation’s latest quarterly earnings outlook published today (Tuesday). With … Continued READ MORE
Housing Share of wealth owned by the recently retired retired has now overtaken the under 45s 10 December 2015 The share of wealth enjoyed by the recently retired has overtaken that held by under 45s since the financial crisis, David Willetts will say at a lecture at Keele University later today (Thursday). Willetts will draw on new analysis by the Resolution Foundation which shows that the share of total wealth held households headed by … Continued READ MORE
Housing Almost a third of all spending by under-30s goes on housing 8 December 2015 Housing accounts for almost a third of all spending in households headed by someone under 30, compared to less than 20 per cent for those aged 50 to 74, the Resolution Foundation said in response to the latest ONS Family Spending Survey published this morning (Tuesday). The RF analysis of the latest ONS figures show … Continued READ MORE
Welfare Low-income working families on Universal Credit set to lose £1,300 26 November 2015 Working households on Universal Credit are set to lose an average of £1,000 in 2020, rising to £1,300 for those with children, despite the welcome reversal of the main cuts to tax credits announced in the Spending Review – according to new analysis published today (Thursday) by the independent think-tank the Resolution Foundation. The Foundation notes that these losses will … Continued READ MORE
Welfare Very welcome relief on tax credits but most losses have been delayed rather than reversed 25 November 2015 Pace of spending cuts eased with the state set to be increasingly focused on healthcare and pensions Reversing tax credits cuts will bring welcome relief for millions of families who were set to lose an average of £1,300 next year. But most of the losses have been delayed rather than scrapped, leaving millions of working … Continued READ MORE
Labour market Welcome return to pay growth but far stronger rises needed to beat inflation next year 18 November 2015 Strongest growth among lowest paid following 3 per cent increase in minimum wage Real earnings growth has finally returned, but far stronger pay rises will be needed to beat inflation and sustain the pay recovery next year, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) in response to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. The … Continued READ MORE
