Latest news with #Brightmine
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
UK pay deals hold at 3% as employers eye next budget, Brightmine says
LONDON: Pay settlements by British private-sector employers held at 3% in the three months to July and uncertainty about the economy and possible further tax increases means that cautious approach is likely to continue, wage data firm Brightmine said. The figures represented the eighth monthly Brightmine report in a row to show the median private-sector pay deal was 3%. In the three months to July last year, settlements were 4%. Sheila Attwood, Brightmine's HR insights and data lead, said employers were unlikely to take much comfort from official data last week showing Britain's economy grew by a stronger-than-expected 0.3% in the second quarter. "Many employers are continuing to approach wage decisions with caution, keeping wage rises at 3%, in the face of continued economic uncertainty and the looming autumn budget," she said. Numerous businesses have said they are being squeezed by April's tax increase. Finance minister Rachel Reeves is now back under pressure to plug an expected shortfall in the public finances later this year. The Bank of England is watching pay growth closely as it tries to work out when and whether to cut interest rates again. It reduced borrowing costs earlier this month but suggested it might move more slowly going forward due to inflation pressures. Brightmine used data from 19 pay settlements in the three months to July 31 covering more than 600,000 employees. (Writing by William Schomberg; editing by David Milliken)
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK pay deals hold at 3% as employers eye next budget, Brightmine says
LONDON (Reuters) -Pay settlements by British private-sector employers held at 3% in the three months to July and uncertainty about the economy and possible further tax increases means that cautious approach is likely to continue, wage data firm Brightmine said. The figures represented the eighth monthly Brightmine report in a row to show the median private-sector pay deal was 3%. In the three months to July last year, settlements were 4%. Sheila Attwood, Brightmine's HR insights and data lead, said employers were unlikely to take much comfort from official data last week showing Britain's economy grew by a stronger-than-expected 0.3% in the second quarter. "Many employers are continuing to approach wage decisions with caution, keeping wage rises at 3%, in the face of continued economic uncertainty and the looming autumn budget," she said. Numerous businesses have said they are being squeezed by April's tax increase. Finance minister Rachel Reeves is now back under pressure to plug an expected shortfall in the public finances later this year. The Bank of England is watching pay growth closely as it tries to work out when and whether to cut interest rates again. It reduced borrowing costs earlier this month but suggested it might move more slowly going forward due to inflation pressures. Brightmine used data from 19 pay settlements in the three months to July 31 covering more than 600,000 employees. (Writing by William Schomberg; editing by David Milliken) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
UK pay deals hold at 3% as employers eye next budget, Brightmine says
LONDON, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Pay settlements by British private-sector employers held at 3% in the three months to July and uncertainty about the economy and possible further tax increases means that cautious approach is likely to continue, wage data firm Brightmine said. The figures represented the eighth monthly Brightmine report in a row to show the median private-sector pay deal was 3%. In the three months to July last year, settlements were 4%. Sheila Attwood, Brightmine's HR insights and data lead, said employers were unlikely to take much comfort from official data last week showing Britain's economy grew by a stronger-than-expected 0.3% in the second quarter. "Many employers are continuing to approach wage decisions with caution, keeping wage rises at 3%, in the face of continued economic uncertainty and the looming autumn budget," she said. Numerous businesses have said they are being squeezed by April's tax increase. Finance minister Rachel Reeves is now back under pressure to plug an expected shortfall in the public finances later this year. The Bank of England is watching pay growth closely as it tries to work out when and whether to cut interest rates again. It reduced borrowing costs earlier this month but suggested it might move more slowly going forward due to inflation pressures. Brightmine used data from 19 pay settlements in the three months to July 31 covering more than 600,000 employees.
Reuters
22-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UK private sector pay settlements stagnate at 3%, Brightmine says
LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - Pay settlements by British private-sector employers held at 3% in the three months to June, representing a pay cut in inflation-adjusted terms for many workers, according to a survey published on Wednesday. With the Bank of England watching for signs of weakening inflation pressure in the economy, the figures from wage data firm Brightmine represented the seventh monthly report in a row to show no change in private-sector pay deals. A year ago private sector settlements were running at 4.8%. "After a period of historically high settlements in response to inflation, we're now seeing the return of employer pay restraint," Sheila Attwood, HR insights and data lead at Brightmine, said. "While 3% is consistent, it's also stagnant, and real-terms pay erosion is starting to reappear for many, meaning many workers are actually worse off this year compared to inflation." Britain's headline consumer price inflation rate rose to 3.6% in the 12 months to June, its highest in more than a year. However, a string of reports have suggested a weakening of the labour market. Brightmine's figures showed public sector pay settlements running at 4.3% and the threat of a strike by doctors showed that Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government remained vulnerable to public worker unions, Attwood said. "One year in, Labour faces growing pressure to balance fiscal restraint with rising pay demands across critical services — and that tension is only set to intensify," she said. Brightmine studied 195 pay settlements in the three months to June 30 covering more than 2.5 million employees.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
UK jobs surveys send fresh cool-down signals
LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's labour market is showing further slowdown signs, according to surveys published on Wednesday which pointed to below-inflation pay growth and a fall in job vacancies, especially for graduate-level jobs. Most pay settlements offered by private sector employers held at 3% in the three months to the end of May - lower than the most recent inflation reading of 3.4% - and almost 15% of firms gave smaller raises of 2.5%, data firm Brightmine said. "Private sector employers are holding steady at 3%, taking a more cautious approach as, they wait for firmer economic signals," Sheila Attwood, data lead at Brightmine, said. Separate figures from recruitment platform Indeed showed a latest fall in job vacancies which were down 5% in mid-June from their level at the end of March. Vacancies were 21% below their pre-pandemic level, leaving the UK as the only advanced economy tracked by Indeed with job openings lower than before the coronavirus pandemic. The share of graduate-level posts advertised was its lowest since at least 2018 with the biggest drops in human resources, accountancy and marketing, typically areas most vulnerable to a slowdown in the economy. Indeed said the fall could also be linked to the impact of artificial intelligence on some job roles. However, the weakening of the overall jobs market did not represent a slump, despite warnings from employers about the impact of April's increase in social security contributions ordered by finance minister Rachel Reeves. Retail postings were down 2% since April, while in food service they were 10% lower. Hospitality and tourism job postings were down 11%, Indeed said. The Bank of England is watching the jobs market for its inflationary pressures as it considers when to cut interest rates again. Governor Andrew Bailey on Tuesday pointed to a slowdown in pay growth. (Writing by William Schomberg, editing by Andy Bruce)
