Foundation report of low pay

A new report underlines why Britain needs a pay rise, showing the proportion of employees in low-paid work across the UK has passed 5 million.

The Resolution Foundation report will reveal, in its annual audit of low pay across the country on Wednesday (29 October), that the proportion of employees in low-paid work across Britain increased from 21 to 22% last year.

Low Pay Britain 2014 will show that the number of people earning less than two-thirds of median hourly pay, equivalent to £7.69 an hour, rose to 5.2 million, an increase of 250,000 on the previous year.

The research shows that the proportion of employees earning less than £7.69 an hour rose, reversing a small improvement in the previous year.

It is clear that preventing people getting stuck in low pay and helping them to move out of in-work poverty should be a priority for employers, the government and all political parties.

Across the UK pay cuts have damaged the economy and caused real hardship for millions of people. Our members are facing the tightest living standards squeeze for nearly a century.