Average site labour rates approach £1,000 a week

Grant Prior 2 years ago
Share

Average labour rates continued to rise last month hitting £992 per week despite signs of a slowdown in building activity.

Latest data from the industry’s biggest payroll firm Hudson Contract shows average earnings for self-employed tradespeople grew by 1.3% cent during November and were 5.1% higher than the same period last year.

Ian Anfield, managing director of Hudson Contract, said: “Our clients are busy, but as we have seen for some time tender opportunities are slowing down as housebuilders react to challenging conditions in the mortgage market caused by the increased cost of borrowing.

“Sooner or later, developers will have to choose between maintaining their turnover or their margin.

“Many clients believe the housing market will contract next year but based on our past experience, construction firms will still want to retain their most productive operatives.

“During the last downturn in 2007-09, we saw that self-employed tradespeople with the right mix of skills and experience continued to command high rates of pay. It was the newly qualified, the improvers and the young who suffered.

“There are certainly lots of incremental gains within the gift of the self-employed to further increase productivity which will help them to maintain their income levels.”

Weekly earnings hit all-time highs in the East of England (£1,092), London (£1,041) and Yorkshire and Humber (£981) during November, which is traditionally one of the busiest months of the year in the lead-up to the festive season.

Self-employed electricians enjoyed the highest pay of all the trades, earning an average of £1,199 per week.

Latest news

Buyers more bullish about prospects for year ahead

Residential "resilient" but commercial work a weak spot
17 hours ago

Council backs first Brutalist car park-to-flats scheme

Newcastle-under-Lyme multi-storey car park to be reborn as pioneering homes scheme
20 hours ago

Hinkley Point C hits peak build with 26,000 jobs

3,000 more workers to join as fit-out work ramps up
19 hours ago

Over 40 firms win Wessex Water M&E minor works deal

Broad sweep of specialists picked for AMP8 programme
20 hours ago

Spencer lands Scottish bridge hat-trick

Steelwork, gantries and bearing upgrades on Kessock, Forth and Tay crossings
1 day ago

Winners revealed for £1.5bn decarbonisation deal

Fusion21 confirms places for 40 firms: Full list
19 hours ago

Cladding firm fined £225,000 after fatal fall

Court hears how cherry picker didn't reach all parts of repair job
20 hours ago

Early call-out for Ebbsfleet Garden City infrastructure

Bidders day to set out plan for Ebbsfleet Central commercial scheme
20 hours ago

Completed buildings caught-up in Gateway 2 chaos

Developer distraught after dealing with Building Safety Regulator
2 days ago

Aviva submits plans for 34-storey City office tower

Subject to planning work to start in autumn 2027
2 days ago

Murphy takes 40% stake in Aussie civils contractor

Firm enters Australasian market with stake in Sydney-based contractor Abergeldie
2 days ago

Moat seeks firm for £420m repairs and maintenance deal

15-year deal to upkeep 20,000 south east homes
2 days ago

Lynch takes over hotel for Sizewell plant operators

Hire giant now in the hotel business to guarantee accommodation for workers
2 days ago

Subcontractors wanted across Scotland

Latest Constructionline event in Glasgow: Register now
2 days ago

Six guilty of £2m bribery over Devon housing site deals

Corrupt building bosses and E.ON project chief and QS sentenced
6 days ago

1,650 former ISG staff launch legal claims

Redundancy Payment Service facing payout of more than £9m
7 days ago

Plans lodged for £1bn cancer research centre in Sutton

London Cancer Hub will deliver around 1m sq ft of lab and research space
6 days ago

London Met Uni seeks firm for £284m estate revamp

Contractor wanted to deliver capital works and FM
6 days ago

Delayed £2bn estate rebuild back on as Berkeley signs deal

Birmingham council development agreement paves way for 2028 Ladywood start
7 days ago

Tilbury Douglas boosts margin to 2.1% as profits double

Firm targets 3.5% margin by 2029 under new business plan
7 days ago

Subbies battle for fastest bricklayer title

Winchmore management team go back on the tools
7 days ago

Green light for revised McLaren Reading revamp

Mixed-use plans to transform Broad Street Mall site
6 days ago

Three arrested in Blu-3 and Mace bribery probe

Serious fraud office swoops over alleged £3m bribes to former Mace associates
1 week ago

Scotland’s most complex A9 dualling job heads to market

Market testing starts for £205m Pitlochry to Killiecrankie 6.4km upgrade
1 week ago

Unite signs £390m student beds JV with Manchester Met

Construction at Cambridge Halls site to start next year
7 days ago

Turkish contractor Limak to build new Luton Town stadium

Construction to start this summer on 25,000-seater venue
1 week ago

Kitchen fitter crushed to death by concrete blocks

House builder goes into liquidation before court case
7 days ago

Mears clinches £230m renewal for key Milton Keynes housing deal

Housing upkeep contractor achieves 100% renewal rate in bust rebid period
7 days ago

Murphy on board at new £32m rail station

Construction to start next year at Golborne station
1 week ago

HS2 engineers finish UK’s heaviest bridge slide early

A46 Kenilworth Bypass reopens 30 hours earlier than planned
1 week ago

Contractor services