Social Mobility in UK / Almost three-quarters of workers who were on low pay in 2002 failed to escape

Almost three-quarters of Britain’s workers who were on low pay in 2002 failed to escape and stayed stuck with poor wages over the course of the following decade, according to one of the most comprehensive studies investigating Britain’s lack of social mobility.

The report from the Resolution Foundation, an independent thinktank, shows that of the 4.7 million workers who were low-paid in 2002, 1.3 million (27% of the total) didn’t improve their earnings at any point during the decade and that a further 2.2 million (46%) moved in and out of low pay but had failed to escape it for good by the end of the decade.

Only 800,000 workers (18%) moved up the earnings ladder without slipping backwards over a sustained period during these 10 years. A further 400,000 (9%) retired or left the labour market. This means 73% of those on low pay either remained stuck there or simply moved in and out of low pay during the decade.

The findings will raise questions on the extent to which the current statutory minimum wage system is working and how much more needs to be done to improve the skills of those who receive poor pay.

The evidence from the decade 2002-2012 shows that women are much more likely to be stuck on poor pay than men. Of the women who were low paid in 2012, one in three (33 %) had been stuck on it over the preceding decade – 900,000 employees. This compares to just over one in five (21%) of men – 400,000 employees.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at 

via Stuck in low paid jobs for a decade: Britain’s lack of social mobility revealed | Society | theguardian.com.