Minimum salary needed to live comfortably has gone up

WORKERS believe a salary of £49,300 is now needed to live comfortably as the cost of living crisis bites, a survey has found.

The wage is £16,300 more than the £33,000 median full-time salary last year, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Recruitment firm Reed found that more than a quarter (26 per cent) are unhappy with their current salary, with more than six in 10 (61 per cent) of them not believing that their salary is rising in line with living costs.

Soaring inflation has squeezed household budgets, rising to 11.1 per cent in the 12 months to October 2021, the highest rate in 40 years.

Of the 5,000 UK workers surveyed, those in London felt they needed the most money to live comfortably – saying that they would need a salary of £65,000. Those in the West Midlands and the East of England felt they needed the least, saying they would require a salary of £44,000 for a comfortable standard of living.

Workers in Yorkshire and the Humber said a comfortable salary would be slightly more, at £45,000. Meanwhile, the South East felt that a salary of £49,000 would be comfortable.

Men felt that a comfortable salary was about £52,700 with women considering £47,000 sufficient.

The research also revealed that a fifth (20 per cent) of workers are actively looking for new job opportunities and more than a third (38 per cent) are considering looking for a new job.

Reed also found that the engineering and manufacturing sectors have seen relatively big salary increases over the past year, while the financial services and insurance sectors have seen some salaries fall. Those in the science and pharmaceuticals industry had the highest estimate for a comfortable salary, at £66,000. Meanwhile, social care workers had the lowest estimate, at £40,500.

Ian Nicholas, global managing director at Reed, said: “It’s clear that despite the jobs market remaining largely positive, the uncertainty and price shocks in food and fuel have created uncertainty for both businesses and employees.

“There is some hope, however, as there remains a healthy level of activity in the employment market. Even though we aren’t expecting a massive shake-up with salaries, we are still seeing a lot of movement – people are taking the risk and looking for a better-paying job.”