Member Article

Manufacturing sees greatest wage increases

Wages in manufacturing are seeing greater surges than any other industry according to a new report.

Manufacturing employees are enjoying a median pay increase of 3% compared to 1.5% for those in the services sector, according to statistics, borne out of current recruitment trends.

Almost a third of manufacturing companies recruited new employees in the first quarter, a figure which is expected to rise as the sector grows.

Pay increases in the services sector are depressed by pay freezes in the public and not-for-profit sectors. When pay awards for these two hard-hit sectors are removed from the sample, the services median recovers to 2.5%, suggesting that private sector deals are only slightly lower than those in the manufacturing sector.

XpertHR Pay and Benefits deputy editor Sarah Welfare said: “We are now seeing some higher wage deals in manufacturing, where pay rises have been gradually recovering since pay freezes dominated the sector in 2009-10.

“In contrast, our statistics confirm that it has been a depressing April pay round for public sector workers, where pay freezes are the norm.”

Commenting on these latest figures, Tony Sarginson, from EEF in the North East said: “Despite the continued upward curve of pay settlements here in the North East, we are only continuing a return to levels we would expect to see in relatively normal economic conditions.

“Whilst some companies are under pressure to give higher settlements, it is clear that the vast majority are under equal competitive pressure to maintain tight control of their internal costs.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .