Wages fell for the first time since the 2009 recession. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for the April to June quarter showed that wages, including bonuses, fell by 0.2%. Excluding bonuses, wages rose by 0.6% – the slowest growth rate since 2001, when records began.
Meanwhile, the Bank of England indicated that the squeeze on households will last until the year end as it halved its wage growth estimate for 2014 to 1.25%, below an inflation rate running at 1.9%.
Recent pay surveys have also shown pay stagnating at below inflation levels. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development said last week that pay was likely to stay below inflation for several months and unlikely to jump above inflation until next year.
John Philpott, director of the Jobs Economist consultancy, said the employment figures reflected the UK's booming economy but that workers were suffering "paymageddon" as wages went into reverse.
The general secretary of the TUC, Frances O'Grady, said the figures suggested the economy is "very good at creating low-paid jobs.” She said: "Self-employment has been responsible for almost half of the rise in employment over the last year. The fact that self-employed workers generally earn less than employees means our pay crisis is even deeper than previously thought, as their pay is not recorded in official figures."
There were also 8.86 million economically inactive people – those without jobs but not seeking or available to work – aged 16-64. This was 15,000 more than in January to March 2014 but 130,000 fewer than a year earlier.
Meanwhile soaring numbers of sick or disabled people are being punished by having their benefits taken away in a Government crackdown that experts say is pushing the most vulnerable in society to destitution. The use of sanctions against those on sickness benefits has gone up by 350 per cent in a year as part of an aggressive drive to push more people into work. Those with serious health conditions can have their benefits removed for up to three years because of minor mistakes, such as missing an appointment at the Job Centre or forgetting to attend skills training.
Lone parents are also having vital benefits withdrawn for months - and even years - for failing to jump through the relevant hoops to prove they are seeking work. Of the 1.2 million sanctions meted out to those on jobseekers' allowance in the 18 months to March 2014, more than 52,000 were single mums or dads. More than 3,000 of these lone parents were in the highest category, which means the removal of benefits for between 13 weeks and three years.
Almost 16,000 sanctions were handed out to those on the sickness benefit Employment Support Allowance between January and March of 2014 - more than triple the number in the first quarter of 2013. In March 2014 alone more than 7,000 ESA claimants were sanctioned - the highest number on record and more than seven times higher than the same month in 2013.
Many are left with no money for food after their benefits are taken away for trivial mistakes and misunderstandings. Some have lost their income for a month or more after missing appointments they were never told about, not searching for a job on Christmas day, or rearranging a job interview that clashes with a funeral. In some cases those with learning disabilities are being sanctioned even when they are unable to understand requests they are sent to attend appointments.
There is evidence that a significant number of decisions penalise people unjustly. Of the 353,540 cases of jobseekers' allowance sanctions that were sent for review, almost half - 172,426 - were overturned, suggesting the person should never have had their benefits removed in the first place.
Matt Downie, director of policy at Crisis, said: “This is a shocking escalation in the use of sanctions and we are deeply concerned about the impact on people’s lives. Sanctions are cruel and can leave people utterly destitute – without money even for food and at severe risk of homelessness. It is difficult to see how they are meant to help people prepare for work. Our own research has shown that many homeless people face unfair and inappropriate sanctions, often handed out due to errors on the part of the Job Centre or Work Programme provider.”
Meanwhile, the Bank of England indicated that the squeeze on households will last until the year end as it halved its wage growth estimate for 2014 to 1.25%, below an inflation rate running at 1.9%.
Recent pay surveys have also shown pay stagnating at below inflation levels. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development said last week that pay was likely to stay below inflation for several months and unlikely to jump above inflation until next year.
John Philpott, director of the Jobs Economist consultancy, said the employment figures reflected the UK's booming economy but that workers were suffering "paymageddon" as wages went into reverse.
The general secretary of the TUC, Frances O'Grady, said the figures suggested the economy is "very good at creating low-paid jobs.” She said: "Self-employment has been responsible for almost half of the rise in employment over the last year. The fact that self-employed workers generally earn less than employees means our pay crisis is even deeper than previously thought, as their pay is not recorded in official figures."
There were also 8.86 million economically inactive people – those without jobs but not seeking or available to work – aged 16-64. This was 15,000 more than in January to March 2014 but 130,000 fewer than a year earlier.
Meanwhile soaring numbers of sick or disabled people are being punished by having their benefits taken away in a Government crackdown that experts say is pushing the most vulnerable in society to destitution. The use of sanctions against those on sickness benefits has gone up by 350 per cent in a year as part of an aggressive drive to push more people into work. Those with serious health conditions can have their benefits removed for up to three years because of minor mistakes, such as missing an appointment at the Job Centre or forgetting to attend skills training.
Lone parents are also having vital benefits withdrawn for months - and even years - for failing to jump through the relevant hoops to prove they are seeking work. Of the 1.2 million sanctions meted out to those on jobseekers' allowance in the 18 months to March 2014, more than 52,000 were single mums or dads. More than 3,000 of these lone parents were in the highest category, which means the removal of benefits for between 13 weeks and three years.
Almost 16,000 sanctions were handed out to those on the sickness benefit Employment Support Allowance between January and March of 2014 - more than triple the number in the first quarter of 2013. In March 2014 alone more than 7,000 ESA claimants were sanctioned - the highest number on record and more than seven times higher than the same month in 2013.
Many are left with no money for food after their benefits are taken away for trivial mistakes and misunderstandings. Some have lost their income for a month or more after missing appointments they were never told about, not searching for a job on Christmas day, or rearranging a job interview that clashes with a funeral. In some cases those with learning disabilities are being sanctioned even when they are unable to understand requests they are sent to attend appointments.
There is evidence that a significant number of decisions penalise people unjustly. Of the 353,540 cases of jobseekers' allowance sanctions that were sent for review, almost half - 172,426 - were overturned, suggesting the person should never have had their benefits removed in the first place.
Matt Downie, director of policy at Crisis, said: “This is a shocking escalation in the use of sanctions and we are deeply concerned about the impact on people’s lives. Sanctions are cruel and can leave people utterly destitute – without money even for food and at severe risk of homelessness. It is difficult to see how they are meant to help people prepare for work. Our own research has shown that many homeless people face unfair and inappropriate sanctions, often handed out due to errors on the part of the Job Centre or Work Programme provider.”
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