Average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, rose by 1.1% between April and June 2013, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Its Labour market statistics, August 2013 revealed that, in cash terms, average weekly earnings, excluding bonus payments and before tax, were £447 in June 2013, up from £443 in June 2012.
The research also found that the average weekly wage, including bonus payments, rose by 2.1% between April and June 2013.
This is the first time the growth rate has exceeded 2% since late 2011.
According to the ONS, the high growth rate for April to June 2013 partly reflects unusually high bonus payments.
This observation was also made in the Bank of England’s Inflation report for August 2013, which suggested that some bonuses may have been deferred to pay the more favourable 45p tax rate that came into force in April 2013.
