UK wage growth failed to keep up with the cost of living crunch between December and February as real pay fell by 1%.
Regular weekly wages, excluding bonuses, actually increased by 4% between December 2021 and February 2022, but when adjusted for inflation it dropped compared with the year before, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Prices rose by 5.5% in January and inflation reached 6.2% in February. The Bank of England is expecting inflation to reach 8% this year, which will only worsen the impact on Britons.
Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said: “While strong bonuses continue to mitigate the effects of rising prices on people’s total earnings, basic pay is now falling noticeably in real terms.”
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In February alone, real regular wages dropped 2.1% which was the biggest drop since August 2013, the ONS added.
Total pay, including bonuses, rose by 5.4% in the 12 months to February….
