Science and Technical industries see highest pay increases during pandemic

• Companies providing professional, scientific and technical services have seen an increase in wages of 11.4% from January 2020 to July 2021
• Businesses in the Arts, Entertainment and recreation sector have seen the second highest increase of 10.84%
• Accommodation and Food Services have seen the lowest increase, at just 0.75%

Professional, scientific and technical services – including financial management, scientific research and development and agricultural – have received the UK’s highest increase in average wage since the pandemic began, a new study shows.

Comparing ONS average wage figures from January 2020 with those from July of this year, research from leading software developers Bacancy Technology reveals that the average salary for those working in professional, scientific and technical services has gone up by 11.4% – the highest increase across industries in the UK. Overall, this sector’s monthly pay packet of £2,270 per month in Jan 2020 has increased to £2,529 in July of this year.

Roles within the Arts, Entertainment and Recreation sector have seen the second highest average wage increase, going up by 10.8%. The industry’s average has gone from £1,255 in January of 2020 to £1,391 in 2021 – a growth of £136.

Though positions within Finance and insurance saw the third highest percentage increase in wages of 10.6%, the sector saw the highest raw average financial increase from last January to this July, of £308. Average wages in this sector increased from £2,883 to £3,191 per month.

At the other end of the spectrum, employees within Accommodation and Food Services ranked with the lowest wage growth, both in percentage and raw financial increase – seeing an average increase of less than 1% – just £8 per month.

Construction services have also seen slow growth over the lockdown period, placing the second lowest in the table with an average increase of just 1% – an additional £23 per month to their pay checks.

Assessing these findings, a spokesperson for N.Rich commented: “This breakdown shows a number of interesting facts surrounding the UK’s most lucrative industries for personal financial growth over time. The rising demand for financial guidance, agricultural suppliers and medical research and development over lockdown has clearly impacted the wages received by the employees of these businesses.”

The study was conducted by N.Rich, which offers a rich array of intent data and ad inventory that enable marketers to drive awareness and lead generation effectively.

UK industry average wage increases – January 2020 to July 2021

Sector	Avg. wage in GBP (Jan ’20)	Avg. wage in GBP (Jul ’21)	Increase in GBP from Jan ’20 to July ’21	Raw financial increase rank	Percentage increase from Jan ’20 to July ’21	Percentage increase rank
Finance and insurance	2,883	3,191	308	1	10.68	3
Information and communication	2,836	3,129	293	2	10.33	4
Professional, scientific and technical	2,270	2,529	259	3	11.41	1
Arts, entertainment and recreation	1,255	1,391	136	4	10.84	2
Agriculture, forestry and fishing	1,668	1,803	135	5	8.09	5
Energy production and supply	3,228	3,358	130	6	4.03	15
Administrative and support services	1,580	1,707	127	7	8.04	6
Health and social work	1,768	1,895	127	8	7.18	8
Extraterritorial	2,796	2,920	124	9	4.43	14
Education	1,891	2,013	122	10	6.45	9
Real estate	1,995	2,104	109	11	5.46	12
Manufacturing	2,298	2,402	104	12	4.53	13
Other service activities	1,360	1,461	101	13	7.43	7
Transportation and storage	2,254	2,344	90	14	3.99	16
Wholesale and retail; repair of motor vehicles	1,476	1,557	81	15	5.49	11
Mining and quarrying	3,870	3,939	69	16	1.78	19
Water supply, sewerage and waste	2,457	2,517	60	17	2.44	17
Public administration and defence; social security	2,460	2,519	59	18	2.40	18
Households	910	963	53	19	5.82	10
Construction	2,196	2,219	23	20	1.05	20
Accommodation and food services	1,070	1,078	8	21	0.75	21

 www.bacancytechnology.com