Self employed pay rates within construction have exceeded cost of living increases according to reporting by Construction Enquirer. Demolition workers, plasterers, plumbers, roofers and scaffolders have seen weekly pay over the year keeping ahead of the UK official inflation rate, which has climbed to 9.1% over the year since May 2021.
| Self employed trade weekly pay rates | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| May-21 | May-22 | % change | |
| Bricklaying | £897 | £859 | -4.2% |
| Civil engineering | £828 | £864 | 4.3% |
| Demolition & wrecking | £777 | £864 | 11.1% |
| Electrical | £1,063 | £1,071 | 0.7% |
| Equipment & operator hire | £891 | £935 | 4.9% |
| General construction | £889 | £948 | 6.6% |
| Insulation | £899 | £ 918 | 2.1% |
| Joinery | £1,011 | £ 1,029 | 1.8% |
| Mechanical & engineering | £1,068 | £1,011 | -5.3% |
| Plastering | £741 | £ 831 | 12.2% |
| Plumbing | £967 | £1,065 | 10.1% |
| Roofing | £698 | £781 | 11.9% |
| Scaffolding & lifting | £725 | £800 | 10.3% |
| Shop fitting | £1,060 | £1,105 | 4.3% |
| Specialist trades | £824 | £841 | 2.0% |
| Steel & timber frame erection | £882 | £842 | -4.6% |
| Surfacing contractors | £818 | £809 | -1.1% |
According to industry payroll specialist Hudson Contract other trades including bricklayers, mechanical & engineering contractors and steel erectors have faired less well with weekly pay packets actually down on a year ago.
Latest figures for May show labour rates grew across the board by 2.8% compared with April as in-demand self-employed subcontractors continued to boost their earnings with average weekly pay for freelancers increased to £918.
Ian Anfield, managing director of Hudson Contracting said
“It’s a real shame that the government, which says construction is the foundation of the economy, has chosen to slap huge tax rises on the industry by ending the red diesel rebate and introducing a VAT reverse charge.
“Inflation is now big news because it is hitting households and it will be even bigger news if the tax rises start to impact house builders – the foundation of the economy can only carry so much.”
