Inflation soars

The main story this month is skyrocketing inflation. RPI is at 7.1%, with pay rises struggling to keep up. AWE show 3.8% growth in regular pay for the whole economy in October, with only meagre rises of 1.8% in manufacturing and 2.9% in the public sector. In contrast, Payline shows that there was healthier pay growth relative to inflation at 4.8% in November for some workers. Our estimates for full-time weekly earnings by occupation have been re-based, resulting in lower earnings estimates for most categories. This is because ASHE medians have risen by less, between the 2020 and 2021 surveys, than AWE, which has been somewhat distorted by the impact of the pandemic.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices

https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours