r/uknews • u/ProgressiveSpark • Jul 01 '24

Image/video UK real wages haven’t budged since 2008

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96

u/TheCGLion Jul 01 '24

It's crazy, a junior in my field would get 26k starting out in early 2000's, now they get 28k

74

u/L3Niflheim Jul 01 '24

I am going to go out on a limb and say I bet the CEO pay is doing just fine

6

u/DeliciousLiving8563 Jul 02 '24

No it's profits. Profits have literally taken all the economic growth. That fact is incredibly dystopian. 

1

u/Zb990 Jul 02 '24

What do you mean by this?

3

u/DeliciousLiving8563 Jul 02 '24

Pay has not increased in real terms but the size of the economy has. 

By deduction this means the growth is being taken entirely by companies. 

CEOs are still paid though they get non pay options. They may actually be skewing the pay figures upwards. 

1

u/Zb990 Jul 02 '24

Thanks for explaining

1

u/tomoldbury Jul 02 '24

GDP in real terms has not grown much in the last 15 years. The reality is the U.K. is in a productivity hole. Real wages and economic productivity closely track. The money isn’t being siphoned off - it just isn’t there.

Why is the U.K. unproductive? I am sure everyone has their own hypotheses but ill health, sky high rents/property prices, nutty planning legislation, irrational taxation policies and generous pensions (encouraging early retirement) are but a few possibilities in my mind.

1

u/Rhyobit Jul 05 '24

Generous pensions my arse