Debt help needed as families cope with biggest wage drop on record

23/12/2009

Millions of families across the UK could soon be seeking out debt advice as they struggle to cope with the biggest fall in average wages since records began.

Coming on the back of a new report from the retail giant Asda which showed that levels of discretionary income have continued to slow when compared to the growth in the cost of living, official data has now revealed that this situation is partly being driven by a drop in pay.

According to the figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), wages were down by 1.3 per cent over the third quarter of 2009 when compared to the same period of 2008.

This means that British workers were collectively paid £1.9 billion less over the three-month period, the biggest reversal since the government agency started collecting wage data in the mid-90s.

The latest official data also revealed that the UK's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.2 per cent over the quarter, with the country still in recession and many families still struggling with personal income worries and likely to benefit from professional debt advice.

Tags; Debt Management and Banking,

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