Wages set to drop in 2018
UK workers worst off in global poll
BRITISH workers face the biggest real term fall in wages of any advanced economy next year, a top think tank has warned.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) predicted workers here would see average pay go up around 1.5% in 2018 – down sharply from 2.5% in 2017.
And inflation would only slow from 2.8% to nearly 2.7%, it said.
That means a drop in real-term wages of just over 1.1% after inflation.
It’s the worst of any of the 31 countries in the OECD research and compares with a near 1.1% real pay rise for US workers, 1% in Germany and 0.7% in France.
The prediction is a blow for the Tories ahead of today’s General Election.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Boosting wages has to be a top priority for whoever gets the keys to Downing Street.”
The highly respected OECD also warned that economic growth in the UK would slow from 1.6% to 1% next year. John McDonnell, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, said: “This is a hammer blow for the Tories’ economic credibility. Only Italy is set to be a worse performer than Britain amongst the major economies.”
The UK’s predicted slowdown was blamed on Brexit uncertainty and households being hit by higher prices.
The UK’s sluggish growth compared with a global economy which the OECD forecast would enjoy a 3.6% surge next year.
The Paris-based group revised down growth in the US for 2017 from 2.3% to 2.1%.