UK Wage Growth Slows to Over 3-Year Low

Regular pay in the UK, excluding bonuses, rose 3.8% year-on-year to GBP 690 per week in the three months to January 2026, slowing from a marginally revised 4.1% gain in the previous period and falling short of market expectations of 4%. It was the weakest increase since the three months to November 2020, with private sector wages slowing slightly to 3.3% from 3.4%, the lowest since late 2020. Also, public sector pay slowed to 5.9% from the prior 7.2%, the weakest since mid-2025. By industry, annual gains were seen in wholesale, retail, hotels, and restaurants (4.8%), manufacturing (3.9%), services (3.9%), construction (2.0%), and finance and business services (2.0%). Adjusted for inflation, real wages rose 0.4% in the three months to January, following a 0.5% gain in the previous period, the lowest since mid-2023.

Regular pay in the UK, excluding bonuses, rose 4.2% year-on-year to GBP 691 per week in the three months to December 2025, slowing from a marginally revised 4.4% in the previous period and matching market forecasts. It was the weakest increase since the three months to January 2022, with private sector wages slowing to 3.4% from 3.6%, the lowest since late 2020. Meanwhile, public sector pay slowed to 7.2% from a record high of 7.9%. By industry, the strongest annual gains were seen in wholesale, retail, hotels, and restaurants (5.1%), followed by manufacturing (4.4%),, services (4.2%), construction (2.3%), and finance and business services (2.0%). Adjusted for inflation, real wages rose 0.5% in the three months to December, following a 06% gain in the previous two periods.

Regular pay in the UK, excluding bonuses, rose 4.5% year-on-year to GBP 689 per week in the three months to November 2025, slightly easing from 4.6% in the previous period and aligning with market forecasts. It was the weakest increase since the three months to April 2022, with private sector wages slowing to 3.6% from 3.9%, the lowest since late 2020. Public sector pay, however, accelerated to 7.9% from 7.6%, the fastest rise on record. By industry, the strongest annual gains were seen in wholesale, retail, hotels, and restaurants (5.1%), followed by services (4.6%), manufacturing (4.4%), construction (2.4%), and finance and business services (2.2%). Adjusted for inflation, real wages rose 0.6% in the three months to November, holding steady for the second period in a row.