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Workers earn more in their late 30s

04/07/2014

The average worker in the UK is most likely to see their earnings peak in their late 30s according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

A 29 year old worker in the UK had an average wage of £13.93 an hour in 2013, the highest wage of every age range.

These findings have revealed big changes from the mid-1970s when those in their late 20s were the highest paid age group of workers. In 1975, the highest average wage peaked at 29 years old, as this age group earned the equivalent of £7.09 an hour in today’s money.

However, the figures cover up huge differences in the wage peaks for men and women.

The average wage peak for a man in 2013 was at 50 years old, but for women it was just 34 years old. One explanation for this could be the higher likelihood of women taking reduced hours at this age as they start up a family.

Despite the difference in wage peaks for men and women, the gender pay gap has improved significantly since the 1970s, when men were generally paid significantly more than women throughout their entire careers.

Lowest paid have benefited



Since 1998, the lowest paid have seen the highest growth in wages, as the bottom 1% of earners saw their wages grow by 49% up to 2013. In contrast, the top 1% of earners experienced the smallest wage growth out of any other workers.

This is the opposite of what happened between 1975 and 1998 when the top 1% of earners saw their wages grow by 138%. This was more than twice as much as the bottom 1% of earners whose wages grew by just 63% in the same period.

However, Frances O’Grady, general secretary at the TUC said that "we need to go further”, as a short-term fall in equality is “not the lasting change we need”.

He continued to say that as the economy is recovering, “the priority must be a pay rise for Britain’s workers”.



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