Lowest-paid spend highest percentage of wages on childcare
Catherine Gaunt
Friday, March 30, 2012
Childcare costs account for more than a third of salaries in the UK, according to research, with clerical office workers among the worst hit.
Data compiled by management consultancy the Hay Group has found that clerical workers in England pay an average of £103.19 a week on childcare, equivalent to 34.8 per cent of salaries.
Clerical level staff in England are the hardest hit, with 34.8 per cent of their pay going on childcare, nearly twice as much as professionals, who use 18.3 per cent of their salaries for childcare.
Clerical level workers have seen the costs of childcare rise considerably over the past five years, spending 4.7 per cent more on childcare than they did five years ago.
The highest rise in childcare costs for anywhere in the UK is Wales, where costs are now 6.5 per cent higher than they were in 2007.
The quarterly PayNet Salary Tracker includes data for all nine UK regions, as well as Scotland and Wales.
It analyses pay and salaries for more than one million employees in more than 700 organisations, providing a breakdown for five different employee levels.
Parents in the south of England spend the most, paying up to 35.5 per cent of their weekly wages on childcare.
London parents are close behind, allocating 34.2 per cent of their salaries to childcare costs.
In Scotland parents can expect to pay £101.49 (34.1 per cent of their wages) and in Wales £92.35 a week (34.2 per cent).
Parents pay the least in the North-East of England, with 28.9 per cent of salaries going on childcare.
Adam Burden, reward information consultant at Hay Group, said, ‘UK workers are feeling the pressure of juggling careers with family life, and with household budgets continuing to feel the squeeze, the rising cost of childcare presents another serious strain.’
Despite rising childcare costs, less than half (46 per cent) of UK employers currently offer any form of childcare support. Of those that do, the most common benefit is childcare vouchers (35 per cent).
Mr Burden added, ‘Employers need to consider ways to help their workers with mounting childcare costs to ensure they attract and retain talent regardless of their childcare needs.
‘Firms should consider offering childcare vouchers, flexible working and creative benefits, such as an onsite nursery, in addition to subsidised childcare. These can make a vital difference for employees with children.’
