UK wages see unexpected rise as unemployment rate holds steady at 4.4 per cent
18 February 2025, 08:31
The growth of UK wages have accelerated for three months running it emerged on Tuesday as official figures revealed that unemployment flatlined at 4.4 per cent.
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According to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the average regular pay surged to 5.9% in the three months to December - up from 5.6% in the previous three months.
Both private and public sector worker pay increased - with the numbers excluding bonuses.
Economists had been expecting a 5.8% rise, marking the fastest rate of growth since the three months to April last year.
The growth comes despite further signs of strain where the jobs market is concerned, with the number of vacancies tumbling once again, according to the figures.
A rise in unemployment had been anticipated by economists, who were polled by the Reuters news agency.
It comes as the average number of vacancies pulled back once again, down 9,000 to 819,000 in the three months to January.
Wages outstripped Consumer Prices Index inflation by 3.4%, the ONS added - meaning more money in the pocket of earners when the price of the average household basket is taken into account.
But in a more encouraging sign, the ONS estimated that the number of UK workers on payrolls rose by 21,000 during January to 30.4 million.
This followed a 14,000 drop in December.
The UK unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.4% in the three months to December, although the ONS reiterated caution over the statistic due to an overhaul of the nation's jobs survey.
The data comes amid warnings from businesses over job losses and higher prices after the Government moved to increase national insurance contributions and announced another rise in the minimum wage in last October's Budget.
A survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) on Monday revealed that a third of businesses expect their employment costs to increase and said they plan to cut jobs through redundancies or recruiting fewer workers.
ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown said: "Growth in pay, excluding bonuses, rose for a third consecutive time, with increases seen in both the private and public sector.
"After taking account of inflation, real pay growth also increased slightly.
"The number of employees on payrolls was broadly unchanged in the last three months of the year, continuing a medium-term trend of slowing growth.
"The number of vacancies also continued to fall in the latest quarter, albeit more slowly, with the total number remaining a little above its pre-pandemic level."
