February 24th 2024.
It's no secret that living in London can be expensive. With the high cost of living, one would expect that wages in the capital would reflect this. However, a recent study by the Living Wage Foundation has uncovered some concerning information. It turns out that the five lowest-paid areas in the UK are all boroughs in London.
Haringey, Waltham Forest, Redbridge, Brent, and Bexley were found to have the highest number of low-paying jobs in proportion to the cost of living. This information was gathered from a report on 'Employee Jobs Paid Below the Living Wage', which used data from the Office of National Statistics to analyze regions in the UK with the most prevalent wages falling below the Real Living Wage.
The Real Living Wage, calculated independently by the LWF, takes into account the varying costs of living in different areas. As of April 2023, the Real Living Wage was set at £11.95 per hour for London and £10.90 for other regions. Shockingly, in Haringey, nearly one-third of individuals earn below this hourly rate. Brent, Waltham Forest, Bexley, and Redbridge are close behind.
The top ten lowest-paid areas in the UK also include places like Hyndburn in Lancashire, Harrow, Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, East Lindsey in Lincolnshire, and Thanet in Kent. Nationally, 12.9% of employee jobs paid below the Real Living Wage in April 2023. Despite London having the highest average salaries in the country, the proportion of jobs paying below the Real Living Wage is slightly higher than the national average.
Do you feel that your wage is fair for the cost of living in your area? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
In other news, new figures have been released revealing the average salaries across the UK based on age. It's no surprise that those aged 18-21 have the lowest average salary at £22,932. However, there is a significant jump for those aged 22-29, with an average salary of £30,316. This number increases even further for those aged 30-39, with an average salary of £37,544. The highest average earning potential is seen in the 40-49 age bracket at £40,040, but it decreases for those aged 50-59 at £37,804. Finally, for those over the age of 60, the average salary drops even further to £33,852, lower than the 30-39 age bracket.
Instant Offices conducted this research, which looked at salary variations across different industries. The financial and insurance sector saw the most significant growth in revenue from 2023 to 2024, with a staggering 195.5% increase. Mining and quarrying came in second with a 10.1% growth, while transportation and storage, administrative and support service activities, and accommodation and food service activities all experienced growth at a rate of 6.3%.
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For more news from the capital, be sure to check out The Agency's London news hub. And did you know that one London station has a direct train link to China, spanning over 7,500 miles? Or that many London Underground stations now have 4G? Take a look at the map to see if your station is on the list. Plus, you may be surprised to learn that the average price of a London flat is actually cheaper now than it was in 2017.
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