Average Earnings In The North Increased Faster Than Elsewhere In UK

However, the gap with UK earnings remains, with people in the North earning 90% of the UK figure.

Provisional results from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) showed that growth over the year to April 2009 in median gross weekly earnings for all (i.e. both full- and part time) employees in the North was 3.4% (to £356.7).

This was higher than the comparable UK growth of 2.2% (to £397.3). This represented a marginal improvement over the year from 89% to 90% of UK earnings. Growth in earnings this year for all employees was lower for both the North and the UK compared to last year, when it was 4.6% in the North and 3.4% in the UK (to April 2008).

Both full-time and part-time employees in the North showed a higher increase in earnings over the year compared to the UK. Gross weekly full-time earnings among Northern employees increased by 5.1% over the year, compared to 2.0% in the UK.

The median gross weekly earnings figure for full-time employees in the North, at April 2009, was £439.1. This represented a narrowing of the full-time pay gap from 87% at April 2008 to 90% of the UK figure (£488.7) at April 2009.

Growth over the year for part-time employees was 6.3% in the North compared to a figure of 4.0% in the UK. The median gross weekly part-time earnings in the North at April 2009 was £159.5, over 4% higher than the figure in the UK (£152.9).

However, while hourly rates of pay (excluding overtime) for part-time employees in the North remained higher than in the UK, growth in these was slower (1.9% compared to 4.4% in the UK).

Northern full-time private sector earnings showed an increase of 1.6% compared to 1.0% in the UK. The size of the Northern private sector increase was less marked than for all employees (3.4%).

This has meant little change in the Northern/UK private sector pay gap, with full-time private sector gross weekly earnings in the North at April 2009 (£383.0) some 82.4% of the figure in the UK (£464.7), compared to 82.0% in the previous year. Growth in median full-time weekly earnings for the North's public sector (8.1%) was higher than the comparable UK figure (3.1%). Also, the mean gross full-time weekly earnings for the public administration sub-sector increased by 3.9% over the year.

Median full-time gross weekly earnings in the public sector in the North (£535.4) were almost 40% higher than the private sector. This was more marked than in the UK, where public sector earnings were 16% higher than the private sector.

Differences between the the Northern and UK public and private sectors can be influenced by the timing of pay settlements and the composition of the workforce. Northern full-time public sector weekly earnings were 99.3% of the UK figure at April 2009.

There has been a widening of the gender pay gap for all employees in the North. Female median hourly earnings excluding overtime were some 87.3% of male earnings (compared to 90.4% a year earlier). The Northern gender pay gap remained less marked than in the UK, where the equivalent female to male earnings ratio was 78.0% in April 2009, compared to 77.5% a year earlier.

Female full-time hourly earnings were 96.5% of male earnings in April 2009, compared to 97.4% a year earlier. This gap also remained less marked than in the UK, where the equivalent female to male earnings ratio was 87.8% at April 2009.

At April 2009 full-time employees in the North had the second lowest median gross weekly earnings of the UK regions. Only employees in the North East (£435.9) had median weekly earnings lower than employees in the North (£439.1).

Commenting on the figures, Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster said: "Northern Ireland experienced a 3.4% increase in pay over the year to April 2009, which is to be welcomed. Although growth has been slower than last year, the increase remained above the UK average which is encouraging.

"That said, private sector earnings increased at a slower rate than the Northern Ireland average and there remains a substantial gap between Northern Ireland private sector earnings and those in the rest of the UK."