REAL weekly pay has fallen by £4.50 in the 13 years the Conservative government took power, TUC analysis of Office for National Statistics (ONS) data has shown.

The union federation called the unprecedented squeeze on earnings from April 2008 to April 2023 a “mark of Tory failure.”

TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “While living standards have nosedived for the vast majority of workers, those at the top have been largely insulated.

“Real pay in the City is above its 2008 level. But it’s a different story for most other workers with pay packets still worth less than 15 years ago. 

“This is unprecedented in modern history and a mark of Tory failure.

“The 13 years before the Conservatives took power saw year-on-year pay growth — but under the Tories real pay has fallen.

“The Conservatives are the party of pay cuts. Working people deserve better.”

According to the TUC’s analysis, the ONS figures also showed the average worker would be £125 a week better off had pay increased at the same pace since 2010 as between 1997 and 2010.

It noted real weekly pay grew by £99 during the last Labour administration.

Last month, the Labour Party conference backed a motion calling for a raft of workers’ rights under the New Deal for Working People, putting into writing the commitment that there “will be no regression from the New Deal.”

It came amid union fears over Labour backtracking on workers’ rights.

The TUC says the deal would be transformative for working people by “making work pay, making work secure and making work fair.”