Average full-time pay in the North West fell by £2,461 in real terms since 2010, according to new analysis published by the TUC today (Monday) to mark the beginning of Fair Pay Fortnight which runs from the 16 February to March 1.
In the last year, average pay has fallen by over £500. The average weekly loss to workers pay packets since 2010 is over £45 a week.
The TUC says that UK workers have endured the longest real wage squeeze since records began in the 1850s and that even with inflation falling sharply in recent months at current rates of progress it will still take years for wages to recover to their pre-recession levels.
While average pay for workers in the North West fell by 8.9 per cent in real terms between 2010 and 2014, pay for FTSE 100 bosses shot up by 26 per cent over the same period, says the TUC.
FTSE 100 chief executives saw their pay increase, on average, by £700,000 in real terms between 2010 and 2014.
The average wage for a FTSE 100 CEO in 2014 was £3,334,000 – 132 times the average annual wage in the North West.
The TUC estimates that it took a FTSE 100 CEO just two working days, on average, to earn what most full-time workers in the region earn in a year.
The TUC is organising Fair Pay Fortnight to raise awareness about pay inequality and to campaign for a higher minimum wage, greater extension of the living wage and higher pay settlements in the public and private sector.
A number of events and activities have been planned across the North West.
These include street stalls to talk to the public across the region and highlight the impact of low pay on local areas. We will be in Leyland and Blackpool to make the case for the Living Wage in these areas and talking to people in Manchester about the impact of low pay on younger workers.
On top of this we will be lobbying MP’s to show their support and asking employers, including football clubs and rugby league clubs, to do more including paying staff a Living Wage.
TUC North West Regional Secretary Lynn Collins said: “Despite some signs of growth returning, 2014 was another miserable year for living standards in the North West with real wages falling by over £500 in real terms and an overall loss of £2,500 since 2010. North West workers are still paying the price for a recession that they didn’t cause.
“Even though inflation has fallen sharply in recent months, it is still going to take years for North West workers earnings to recover to their pre-recession levels.
“It is different story though for those at the top. Senior City executives have seen a huge boost in their fortunes since the election as their wages have skyrocketed. That just is not fair and North West workers deserve better and deserve a pay rise.
“This is why we are organising Fair Pay Fortnight, to raise awareness about pay inequality and to call for a sustainable recovery in which everybody shares.”
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