05 Nov 2017
The 2017 Living Wage report for KPMG found that one in five people (21 percent) in the UK are still earning below the real Living Wage, meaning that that an estimated 5.5 million employees are struggling to get out of in-work poverty.
The research, conducted by Markit for KPMG, found that the total number earning below the real Living Wage is down by 100,000 compared to last year, when an estimated 22 percent of all jobs and 5.6 million roles paid less than the real Living Wage. This is the first reduction in five years, but still leaves the total a million higher than in 2012.
Other key findings in the report include:
- Just over one in four (26 percent) of female employees earn less than the real Living Wage, compared to 16 percent of all males. In numerical terms this equates to 3.4 million female employees versus 2.1 million male employees.
- Around 3.1 million part-time employees earn less than the real Living Wage, compared with 2.4 million full-time workers.
- Regionally, Northern Ireland has the highest proportion of jobs earning below the real Living Wage at 26 percent, followed by the East Midlands, Yorkshire & Humber, Wales and the West Midlands all at around 24 percent.
- Earnings below the Living Wage are most prevalent for job roles in the hospitality sector, particularly Bar Staff (86%) and Waiters & Waitresses (83%).
- By age group, by far the highest proportion of sub-Living Wage employees is in the 18-21 year old category. An estimated 66% of employees in this category are below the threshold.
