2017 is the twelfth consecutive year that Oldham average pay has been the lowest in Greater Manchester

The annual hours and earnings survey for 2017 was released today and there are no prizes or surprises for guessing how Oldham fared. So it’s well done to Labour Oldham for achieving an unprecedented twelve years of delivering the lowest paid jobs in all Greater Manchester. Not wishing to buck the trend Labour Oldham Council continue to spend millions on schemes such as the town hall cinema, Foxdenton and Prince’s Gate that will increase the number of menial low-paid jobs in the hospitality, retail and warehouse trade. This week the Council has been indulging in its annual self-praise for the “Get Oldham Working” scheme but has shied away from publishing average pay, working hours and industry breakdown of the Oldham jobs they facilitated. The  Council also have avoided mentioning the disparity between vacancies filled and the record numbers of unskilled migrants arriving in Oldham in the last four years or Oldham’s escalating tax credits cost now the fourth highest in the UK which subsidises the boroughs low-paid employment and suppresses baseline pay.

Annual hours and earnings survey 2017