BoE under pressure from 7.2% wages jump as inflation swallows increase for employees

Pressure on Bank of England

Basic wages rose by 7.2% between February and April, according to the Office for National Statistics, putting the Bank of England under pressure to raise interest rates again, even as high inflation swallowed up the increase leaving employees worse off.

This was the largest growth rate seen outside of the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile growth in average total pay, including bonuses, was 6.5%. However in real terms (adjusted for inflation), growth in total and basic pay fell on the year in February to April, by 2% for total pay and by 1.3% for basic pay. US business confidence in the UK falls for third consecutive year Rosie Hooper, chartered financial planner at Quilter, said: "The latest ONS data show that wages continue to rise, but despite this workers are still 2% worse off in real terms due to persistently high inflation ...