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TUC: Company profitability up in last decade, while real wages slide
Profitability up 1.2 percentage points since 2007, while real wages down 4.4%
Profitability has grown in the last decade, while real wages have fallen, according to new TUC analysis of ONS figures.
The latest figures show UK-registered corporate profitability at 12.6% in 2017, up from 11.4% in 2007. Yet real wages in the same period fell by 4.4%.
In the services sector, profitability is even higher – rising from 14% to 19.1%.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:
“Working people aren’t getting their fair share. Profitability is up, but real wages are still in freefall.
“It’s especially galling to see so many people on poverty pay in the service sector, where profits have shot up.
“Not only does Britain deserve a pay rise, but this evidence shows that business can afford it too.”
Editors note
- Profitability figures are the net rate of return for large UK-based firms, taken from Q3 2007 (11.4%) and Q3 2017 (12.6%), the latest available figures from the ONS: www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/uksectoraccounts/bulletins/profitabilityofukcompanies/julytoseptember2017
- Real wage figures are for full-time employees, taken from the ONS’ Annual Survey for Household Earnings (ASHE) for 2007 and 2017, and adjusted for CPI.
