Real wages 'only £13 a week higher than 2008 by 2028' after Budget

Britain is facing two 'lost decades' for wage growth in the wake of Rachel Reeves' tax and spend Budget.

Average wages are set to be just £13 a week higher in 2028 than they were in 2008, according to the Resolution Foundation.

The grim conclusion from the left-leaning think-tank underlines the scale of the difficulties the country has been going through since the credit crunch.

Obstacles have included turmoil over Brexit followed by the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis.

But the Chancellor has conceded that her massive £25billion raid on employers' national insurance will further suppress pay rises for workers.

Businesses have been warning of job cuts, with some bosses in tears on TV as they wrestle with how to keep their firms running.

In its assessment today, the Resolution Foundation said the overall £40billion tax raid was the biggest ever in terms of money. 

As a proportion of GDP it is thought to have been slightly smaller than the 1993 Budget in the wake of Black Wednesday. 

The think-tank's report said higher inflation and weaker growth due to higher taxes on employment came on top of an 'already challenging outlook'.

'As a result, by 2028 real wages are expected to have grown by just £13 a week over the past two decades,' it said.

Mike Brewer, Interim Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation, said Ms Reeves was 'prioritising extra spending'. 

'The short-term effect of these changes will be better funded public services – not just across schools and the NHS – but, critically, also in our justice system,' he said.

'But families are also set for a further squeeze on living standards as the rise in employer National Insurance dampens wage growth.

'With Britain finally turning the page on its longstanding failure to invest thanks to a £100 billion boost to public capital spending, the hope is that this short-term pain will eventually turn into a long-term living standards gain. 

'But if it doesn't, future Budgets won't be any easier to deliver, especially if further tax rises are needed.'

Care worker struggling to get by on minimum wage  

Julie's life fell into a downward spiral following the breakdown of her marriage. She had two young children to raise, no maintenance payments from the children's father, and little family support as her mother had died and her father was ill.

She struggled to be able to work and ended up relying on payday loans to keep her and her family afloat.

'I struggle on a day to day basis,' she said. 'I'm on the living wage, and I just about keep my head above the water.'

When Julie, 60, eventually returned to work, she was thousands of pounds in debt. She tried to keep costs down while repaying loans such as using foodbanks and downsizing from her family home of 25 years.

Julie says she 'struggles to keep her head above the water'

She eventually reached out to Christians Against Poverty who helped her file for bankruptcy to write off her £28,000 debt.

But she is still struggling day to day financially, earning just over £1,000-a-month for a 30-hour minimum wage contract at a care home.

'I would welcome a rise in minimum wage with open arms', she said. 'I'm a carer. I am in a residential home, and I just think that for what I do every day on a daily basis, the pay isn't good.

'At the end of the month my pay is gone on bills mostly. I obviously need to keep myself alive and keep myself afloat.

'My rent straight away is £500. That's gone before I blink and then obviously we have got gas, electric water, food, phone which we all have to have.'

When asked if the government is supporting people like herself enough, she said: 'Not really, no, because I'm a single parent.

'I only have 25 per cent discount in council tax, where I think I should be having 50 per cent because I am one of two people.

'My friends they're paying 50 per cent each. I have to pay 75 per cent because I'm single.'