According to analysis by the TUC, it would take 52 years for the average worker in Yorkshire to earn what one highly paid banker gets as an annual bonus.
Using the most recent figures reported by the European Banking Authority, the TUC found that highly paid bankers in the UK received an annual bonus of £1,115,314 in 2017, compared to median average earnings of a worker in Yorkshire for that year of £21,321.
More generally, the TUC reported earlier this year that real wages in the finance sector had jumped up by almost £120 a week since 2009. However, most other sectors are still down, with the average worker in Yorkshire lagging behind by £19 per week.
Calling for wages to rise for everyone, not just the millionaires, the TUC is calling on all political parties to put working families first, for instance by banning zero-hours contracts and not cutting taxes for the rich so that public services can be rebuilt.
Given the huge gap between the lowest and highest paid workers in the UK, it is perhaps not surprising that it has recently been found that only half of permanent employees (51 per cent) think they are paid fairly. Even fewer (34 per cent) think that everyone in their organisation is paid fairly, according to a new report by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
The analysis also found that the perception of unfair pay is being driven by employers’ lack of communication around pay. The CIPD is therefore calling on employers to be more transparent about both their pay processes and outcomes.
It also wants all organisations to have a clear definition of fairness which covers both pay processes and outcomes. This should be developed with input from staff on what fair pay means to them.
The CIPD is therefore recommending that medium and large employers should have to carry out an equal pay audit on a regular basis to ensure that they are complying with the law, as well as putting in place a narrative which explains to staff and other stakeholders what skills, behaviours, performance and values it wants from employees and how in return it will reward and recognise these.
Matthew Pull, of Thompsons Solicitors, commented: “Without descending into another exercise in “banker bashing”, these two reports serve to highlight just how shockingly unequal the UK workplace is in terms of pay. What’s even more concerning is that the gap between the highest and lowest paid seems to be increasing, prompting the TUC’s calls for urgent action from the Government to address this issue.”
To read the TUC report in full, go to: https://www.tuc.org.uk/news/how-long-you-need-work-you-earn-one-bankers-annual-bonus-says-tuc-warning-its-not-pretty
To read the CIPD report in full, go to: https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/strategy/reward/surveys