In the UK, total average weekly earnings including bonuses rose 3.8% year-on-year to GBP 745 in the three months to February 2026. This outpaced market expectations of 3.6% but was down from 4.1% in the previous three-month period, marking the slowest pace of growth since the three months to November 2020.
Wage growth in the private sector eased to 3.5% from 3.7%, the weakest rate since late 2029, while pay growth in the public sector also slowed, falling to 5.2% from 6.0%. That was the lowest public sector pay increase since early 2025.
After adjusting for inflation, total earnings were up 0.4% over the period, down from 0.7% previously and representing the softest real wage growth since mid-2023.
