Pay and prices
Average rise is up to 2.4%
Settlements on LRD’s Payline database of collective agreements posted a three-monthly median increase of 2.4% in April against the 2.0% trend in the latest pay round.
However, RPI inflation has been rising at a greater rate — 3.1% in March and 3.2% in February — so workers’ living standards continue to take a hit (see also page 3).
And the pain is set to continue if the forecasters have got it right.
By the end of the year, the median forecast for RPI inflation is 3.8%. Meanwhile, for the calendar year 2017 average earnings are only expected to increase by 2.4%.