Budget deficit reduction efforts hit by low wage growth this year October 13, 2014 Income tax revenue is falling below expectations this year due to sluggish wage growth, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said yesterday, warning it will hit efforts to close the budget deficit. The economy is expanding strongly and creating jobs at a record pace, which should be good for the government’s finances. Unemployment stands at [...]
Chuka Umunna: Labour will cut tax for firms who lift wages October 13, 2014 Firms who pay their low-paid staff a higher wage should get tax breaks, Labour’s Chuka Umunna said yesterday, ahead of a debate in the House of Commons over the minimum wage. The shadow business secretary will call for an £8 per hour minimum wage, a new mandate for the Low Pay Commission (LPC) to push [...]
Earnings season: Morgan Stanley bankers set for bigger bonuses, while Citigroup and JP Morgan traders face drop October 12, 2014 Third quarter earnings season is here and the fun on Wall Street is about to begin. Morgan Stanley's bankers look set for the biggest bonus payouts on Wall Street this year, while JP Morgan and Citigroup bonus traders may be less fortunate. According to estimates seen by Bloomberg, Morgan Stanley "probably had the biggest increase [...]
Skills shortage in construction or property to push up wages by as much as 10pc, says Hays October 9, 2014 Recruitment giant Hays said yesterday that skill shortages were pushing up some white collar salaries as much as 10 per cent, despite sluggish wage growth across the economy as a whole. A booming jobs market has resulted in the firm placing 20 per cent more staff in its latest quarter than in the same period [...]
Signs of wage increases as City workers seek new career opportunities and firms expand October 8, 2014 Back from holiday and looking to move… the rush is on to switch career City workers are making the most of the UK recovery and firms’ expansion plans by hunting for new career opportunities and bargaining for bumper salaries. The number of professionals seeking new roles increased 25 per cent year-on-year in September. There are [...]
Surge in consumer confidence is slowed by poor wage growth September 29, 2014 THE RECOVERY in British consumer confidence has slowed down, GfK’s monthly survey showed yesterday, despite strong economic growth. Analysts believe poor wage growth and sustained inflation are to blame. GfK’s index surged up from sustained lows of minus 13 at the end of last year to plus one last month – well above the study’s long-run [...]
Beware the unintended consequences of hiking the minimum wage September 29, 2014 ED MILIBAND’S promise of an £8 per hour minimum wage by 2020 is one of the latest salvoes in the political battle over living standards. We can expect more help for hard-pressed families from the other party conferences, including the trumpeting of October’s above-inflation rise in the minimum wage. With real wages having fallen dramatically, [...]
Rate-rigging scandal: Lloyds share price slides as it sacks eight people and holds back £3m of bonuses September 29, 2014 Having paid out £226m to US and UK authorities for various cases of rate-rigging back in July, Lloyds Banking Group has now turned its attentions to its own staff, firing eight and holding back £3m of bonuses. Shares in the bank fell 0.5 per cent in early afternoon trading after it said it "has taken [...]
Sluggish wages expected to weigh down on UK consumer spending September 28, 2014 REAL wages will fail to take off in the next couple of years, a group of economists will warn today in a report that predicts sluggish growth in consumer spending. The EY Item Club expects the UK’s jobs boom to continue, with employment climbing higher. Yet “annual wage growth over the next three years will [...]
How long would it take Europe’s minimum wage employees to buy a Big Mac? September 22, 2014 Ed Miliband has announced that a Labour government would raise the minimum wage to £8.00 by 2020 if it came to power. The current lower bound is £6.31, which will increase to £6.50 on 1 October, so the proposed hike would be a dramatic increase. If the bank of England were to average [...]