Wages Fall

Workers’ pay packets in Ayrshire and Stirling have been among the hardest hit in Scotland. Data shows that nationally the real value of average full time earnings has dropped by 6.7% since 2008. In April 2008 the mean gross annual earnings for all full time employees resident in Scotland according to the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) was £28,528. The ASHE figure for the mean gross annual earnings for all full time employees resident in Scotland for April 2015 was £32,472. This is an increase of £3,944 or 13.8%. Between April 2008 and April 2015 inflation has been 20.6%. This means the drop in real value of average earnings of full time workers in Scotland between April 2008 and April 2015 has been 6.7%. For the UK the drop in real value of average earnings for full time employees was 13.6%.

The North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire areas together with Stirling saw the largest decreases in the real value of earnings.

For full time employees resident in Stirling, the drop has been 20.1% since April 2008, and for those living in South Ayrshire the drop was 17%. Workers in North Ayrshire experienced a drop of 15.8%. These are the three areas in Scotland worst affected by the recession. For full time employees resident in Perth & Kinross the drop has been 15.5%, the next area worst affected by the recession in Scotland. The drop in gross average earnings for all full time employees resident in East Ayrshire is 13.0%

From here