UNIONS blasted the Tories over their legacy of low pay and ill health as new figures show that wages have grown at an increasingly sluggish pace while levels of long-term sickness remain historically high.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) published figures today showing that average regular pay growth, excluding bonuses, had fallen to 6.2 per cent in the quarter to December. 

The figure was much lower than anticipated, down from 6.7 per cent in the three months to November, in the slowest growth seen since the three months to October 2022. 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham pointed out that since the government “lost control” of inflation 2021, price rises have vastly outpaced wage increases. 

“As the profiteering bonanza continues, with shareholders pocketing ever higher payouts, workers need above-inflation pay rises just to return to where they were three years ago.”

The number of job vacancies fell again for the 19th month in a row, down 26,000 to 932,000 in the three months to January. 

Economic inactivity remained at 21.9 per cent in the three months to December, with high levels of those off work due to long-term sickness. 

TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the 2.8 million out of work due to long-term sickness “show how people’s lives are being held back by the government’s failure to invest in our NHS.”

He pointed out that average pay is still worth £12 a week less than before the financial crisis 16 years ago, and that over a million people are on zero-hours contracts.

“The Conservative legacy is low pay, ill health and more job insecurity,” he said.

Ben Harriron, director of the Work Foundation at Lancaster University, warned that with the millions inactive due to long-term sickness, the government “may be tempted to tighten welfare sanctions even further to help fill the 932,000 vacancies and reduce the benefit bill.

“Doing so will risk pushing those reliant on universal credit into low-quality insecure work, which could exacerbate any underlying health condition they have and is unlikely to lead to sustained employment. 

“Instead, the focus should be on scaling up investment in the availability of health and occupational support services and driving up the quality of jobs on offer.”