Bankers’ bonuses have risen twice as fast as average worker’s wages since 2008 crash

Government ‘lining pockets of financiers’ while holding down pay for key workers, says TUC

City of London (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Bankers’ bonuses in the City of London have increased at more than twice the speed of workers’ wages since the 2008 financial crash, new research has found.

The TUC said its analysis showed that the average banker’s bonus is worth almost two thirds of an average worker’s pay in the UK.

Bonuses in the finance and insurance sector are now worth, on average, around £20,000 a year – their highest level on record, said the leading union organisation.

Average City bonuses have doubled in cash terms over the period since the last banking crash – which is 2.6 times as fast as wages have increased, according to the analysis of government figures.

Under the current bonus cap, an employee’s bonus can be no bigger than 100 per cent of their annual pay – or 200 per cent if there is approval from shareholders.

But plans unveiled by Liz Truss and her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng in the mini-Budget will remove the cap on bonus payments.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said ministers were “holding down the pay of millions of key workers, while lining the pockets of City financiers”.

She said: “There is simply no justification for lifting the cap on bankers’ bonuses – especially when nurses and teaching assistants are having to use food banks to get by.”

The union said it was time for the government to agree larger wage increases for public sector works rather than trying to help the top “1 per cent” of society.

“That means boosting the minimum wage to £15 an hour as soon as possible, funding decent pay rises for all public sector workers and introducing fair pay agreements for whole industries,” said Ms O’Grady.

The TUC leader added: “The City is already a millionaire’s playground. It doesn’t need another helping hand from the Conservatives. Ministers should be clamping down on this greedy bonus culture by putting workers on company pay boards and introducing maximum pay ratios.”

New strikes or ballots for industrial action are seemingly announced every week as workers across the country demand pay rises to keep up with rapidly rising inflation and the cost-of-living crisis.

The new “winter of discontent” comes amid worsening industrial relations and accusations from union officials that the government is doing little or nothing to help workers struggling with mounting bills.

Nurses and teachers are being balloted on whether to strike over the coming months, while postal workers will stage numerous walkouts in the lead up to the busy Christmas period.