The level of pay rises in the UK fell last month, with the median average dipping to three per cent in the three months up to May 2007 from 3.1 per cent in the three months to April.
This represents an ongoing decline in average pay increases over 2007 to date, which reached an eight-year record high of 3.5 per cent in the first quarter, according to figures from Industrial Relations Services.
In the public sector, government efforts to keep pay rises in line with the target inflation rate of two per cent have kept pay awards at a nine-year low of 2.7 per cent in the three month up to May.
Annual earnings growth fell to four per cent in the three months to April, following relatively high bonuses at the start of the year. Headline and underlying earnings growth both saw declines up until April.
Howard Archer of consultancy Global Insight said that in spite of these trends, it is thought the Bank of England will not be deterred against raising interest rates further to at least 5.75 per cent.
Digg 
Delicious 
Reddit 
StumbleUpon 
Google 
Technorati 
Netvouz