Economic commentators have been kept busy today by a welter of publications. The ONS published their brief assessment of the post Brexit economy; summary – the UK economy appears to have weathered the shock of the decision to leave, but it’s too early to tell the long term impacts. The Bank of…Read more…
Total bonuses reach record high
Government figures out today show that total bonuses across the economy have reached the highest level ever, surpassing the previous high seen just before the financial crash in 2007-8. While the financial sector accounts for nearly one third of the to…Read more…
Tackling debt is about more than personal responsibility
In the latest edition of the ESRC’s Society Now journal, Victoria Boelman from the Young Foundation discusses the need for greater education in order to help households avoid becoming trapped in high-cost debt. Well-intentioned as such work may be, it ignores the role of structural forces on…Read more…
Economic Update: Brexit means… not having to say what Brexit means (yet)
“Brexit means Brexit” is likely to top the list of most repeated phrases of 2016 (at least in the press). But what does Brexit (means Brexit) mean for the economy, and working people’s jobs, rights and pay? In a new report, we attempt to survey the evidence. The problem is, there’s not that much…Read more…
Government must do more to tackle the investment gap if we’re to make Brexit work
Leaving the EU has raised many significant questions for our economic future. We have to do all we can to protect jobs that may be at risk from this uncertainty. We have already seen hiring freezes and the Bank of England has predicted almost a quarter…Read more…
The 45-minute salary: Why we need worker reps on boards
Sir Martin Sorrell is the Chief Executive Officer of WPP, the multinational advertising and PR firm. He’s also retained his place this year as Britain’s highest paid CEO, drawing nearly £70 million in 2015. For those who are used to somewhat fewer zeroes on their pay slips, this might…Read more…
Unions and investors come together to call time on poor employment practices at Sports Direct
Sports Direct is a household name, but one that is now nearly as famous for its use of zero hours contracts and mistreating its workforce as for the sportswear sold in its high street stores. Tomorrow the company’s Annual General Meeting brings the opportunity for investors to raise their voices…Read more…
Automation And The Workforce
Click here to download ‘Automation and the Workforce’ This is a short paper setting out future developments in Robotics/Cobotics and their application in UK industry and services….Read more…
Brexit is a warning shot: time to abandon ‘business as usual’ in trade talks and we should start with CETA
By Jude Kirton Darling 26 August 2016 After the intensity of the EU referendum campaign with all its highs and lows, and a proper summer break to recharge empty batteries, the UK’s MEPs will be…Read more…
Global youth unemployment to rise to 71 million in 2016
Global unemployment is expected to rise to 71 million in 2016, an increase of ½ million from 2015. The unemployment rate is expected to reach 13.1% in 2016, up from 12.9% in 2015 and close to the 20-year peak of 13.2% in 2013. The ILO expects no improvement in 2017. The global youth unemployment…Read more…
The way we think about debt is stopping us from solving the problem
As many as 3.2 million households, and more than 7 million people may be struggling with problem levels of debt, according to a new Centre for Responsible Credit study we commissioned with Unison. A large number of those households face debt levels that they may never clear. This debt leaves them…Read more…
The post-crisis consumer debt boom is less explosive, but even more unaffordable
It is well known that economic growth has still been excessively reliant on households, even in spite of the unprecedented falls in real earnings of recent years. Today the TUC publishes analysis that shows just how heavy pressures on some households have become. The ‘Britain in the Red’ report, by…Read more…
Standstill wages mean over a million low-income families struggle with extreme debt
Today saw the publication of our (The Centre for Responsible Credit) final report from the joint TUC and Unison commissioned ‘Britain in the Red’ project. The project has been looking at available aggregate and household survey data to track the extent of household over-indebtedness: particularly…Read more…
Self-employment at all-time high, but earnings down 25% on pre-crisis peak
Yesterday’s labour market figures showed another rise in self-employment, of 94,000 on the quarter, with employee jobs up 73,000. As a share of total employment, self-employment is now at an all-time high – at 15.1% in 2016Q2, above the previous peak of 15.0% in 2014Q2. Though really a steadily…Read more…
How the Bank of England has teed-up £40-70 billion of government spending (plus financing?)
While most commentators celebrated last week’s ‘Brexit monetary-bazooka’, they perhaps downplayed how well the Bank has teed-up actions from the Treasury. Between the lines, they are supporting increased government spending over the next two years of £40 to £70bn. Duncan Weldon hit the nail on the…Read more…
Industrial Strategy – What Is To Be Done?
By David Bailey, Professor of Industrial Strategy at the Aston Business School The new government under Theresa May has brought with it a marked change of tone on industrial strategy. Whereas the…Read more…
UK real wages decline of over 10% is the most severe in the OECD (equal to Greece)
The decline in UK real wages since the pre-crisis peak is the most severe in the OECD, equal only to Greece. Both countries saw declines of 10.4% per cent between 2007 Q4 and 2015Q4. Apart from Portugal, all other OECD countries saw real wage increases, albeit mostly modest ones. (NB strictly the…Read more…
Please Support Unite & RMT Members Taking Action On The North Sea
Unite and RMT members employed by Woodgroup on Shell oil platforms in the Brent Field on the North Sea are to take strike action on July 26th – the first strike in a generation on the North Sea. They…Read more…
Powering Ahead – a Strategy for Sustainable Industry
Today, the TUC publishes ‘Powering Ahead: How UK industry can match Europe’s environmental leaders’. This report, based on new research from Germany and Denmark, considers both how to rebuild the UK’s industrial sector and how to align the needs of industry with the quest for a cleaner, greener…Read more…
Government borrow more in first quarter of financial year (£26bn) than it originally expected to borrow in the year as a whole (£24bn)
Public sector net borrowing for the first quarter of the current financial year (2016-17) was £26.6bn, down from £27.9bn over the same period of 2016/17. On twitter the ONS are celebrating the lowest figure for the month of June since 2007. But this is hardly the point: the point of substance is…Read more…