Earn £32,500 as a sign-maker? Wages debate [Vid]
According to the website Salary Checker the average salary of a wide-format printer or sign-maker in London is £27,000 with a range of pay scales between a low of £23,000 and a high of £32,500.
Monday, 16 Jun 2014 13:00 GMT
Pay packets: the cost of living has hit many in the industry as the recession comes to an end
Many may blink in disbelief at the figures while others may be comforted by the accuracy of the numbers. For some in the regions away from the south east the idea of earning that much seems a long way off, despite the news that wages are on the rise and are catching up with the increase in the cost of living according to the Government’s Office of National Statistics (ONS).
The ONS says: “The average weekly wage for employees, including bonus payments, rose by 1.7 percent comparing January to March 2014 with the same period a year earlier. Average weekly wages including bonus payments before taxes and other deductions from gross pay were £474 in March 2014, up from £467 a year earlier.
Average weekly earnings excluding bonus payments rose by 1.3% comparing January to March 2014 with the same period a year earlier”
“Average weekly earnings excluding bonus payments rose by 1.3% comparing January to March 2014 with the same period a year earlier. In cash terms, average weekly earnings excluding bonus payments were £449 in March 2014, before taxes and other deductions from gross pay, up from £444 a year earlier.”
The rises in wages has triggered a debate in the industry especially in view of the General Election being just 11 months away. Labour have caught the Government on the hop with their cost of living campaign which in turn has led to a debate about the minimum wage. The Government are commit-ted to an increase later this year with a rise of 19p an hour to £6.50 benefitting one million workers. Labour has floated the idea of a link between the National Minimum Wage and average earnings or a Living Wage level.
Whoever is in charge next May there is little doubt the rises will increase costs for printers and sign-makers and those in the wide-format printing industries.
Unite, the trade union who represents many in the industry has fired off some fighting talk over the levels demanding a much higher rise in order to create a living wage level. However the union has not spoken about industrial action over the issue as the print unions would once would have done, signalling how things have changed since the days of print strikes.
The Institute of Directors (IOD) have warned of a race by politicians to offer the most in order to seek votes in 2015. Simon Walker of the IOD says: “Whilst relatively high employment has been the surprising story of the recession, the flip side has been frustratingly slow wage growth during the recovery. Labour are right to push for workers to see the benefits of economic growth, but the min-imum wage must not become the subject of a political competition to see who can offer the most, irrespective of what the economy and employers can afford.
“The Low Pay Commission has done a good job of balancing the rate against inflation, economic growth, productivity and the effect rises would have on small businesses and young people. In con-trast, setting a target linked to average earnings risks seeming a little simplistic. While growth has returned to the economy, productivity remains stubbornly low, so any increase to the minimum wage must be timed carefully. Ultimately, reducing the tax burden on both employers and employees will help strengthen the position of those in low paid jobs.”
How much should the minimum wage be? Your views please to harry@linkpublishing.co.uk
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To see how different Britain is from the 1950s check out this Pathe News report on the 1959 print strike below:
Back in the day. Print strike in 1959
