UK Living Standards Drop

 British workers’ living standards dropped in May at a record rate after pay rises failed to keep pace with inflation.

Earnings growth increased across the private and public sector by 4.3% in the three months to May excluding bonuses, the Office for National Statistics said, but that left pay down by 2.8% year on year – a record fall.

The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said that “UK workers are suffering the worst pay squeeze in modern history”.

Torsten Bell, the chief executive of the Resolution Foundation, said it was “staggering” that the top 1% of earners – those with pay packets above £170,000 – had secured an 11% pay rise.

UK living standards fall at record rate as inflation soars | UK unemployment and employment statistics | The Guardian