UK wage growth has edged back from record highs but earnings are outstripping inflation at the fastest pace for two years, according to official figures.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said average regular earnings, excluding bonuses, increased by 7.7% in the three months to September, down from am upwardly revised and record high of 7.9% in the previous three months.
The data showed that wages rose 1% after taking Consumer Prices Index inflation (CPI) into account, the highest increase in real wages since the three months to September 2021.
Britain’s rate of unemployment is estimated to have remained unchanged at 4.2% in the third quarter but more cracks are appearing in the jobs sector, with vacancies falling to the lowest level for more than two years, down 58,000 quarter-on-quarter at 957,000.
Darren Morgan, ONS director of economic statistics, said: “Our labour market figures show a largely unchanged picture, with the proportions of people who are employed, unemployed or who are neither working nor looking for a job all little changed on the previous quarter.
“The number of job vacancies fell for the 16th straight month. Nevertheless, vacancies still remain well above their pre-pandemic levels.
“With inflation easing in the latest quarter, real pay is now growing at its fastest rate for two years.”
