London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Thousands of PwC staff to get 9% pay rise to offset cost of living

Thousands of PwC staff to get 9% pay rise to offset cost of living

Thousands of PwC staff are to get a 9% pay rise in response to rising living costs and a competitive recruitment market, the accountancy giant has said.

The company said half of its more than 20,000 employees in the UK would get an increase of at least 9%, while 70% would get a rise of 7% or more.

With vacancies at a record high, many firms are offering pay rises to attract and retain staff.

But ministers have warned big salary rises could further fuel price rises.

Inflation - the rate at which prices go up - hit 9.1% in the UK in May, the highest level for 40 years.

However, for many people, wages are failing to keep up, with regular pay falling at the fastest rate in more than a decade when taking into account rising prices.

PwC said salaries for many of its entry-level programmes would also increase, with starting salaries in audit roles rising by 10% and consulting graduates getting a rise of just over 8%.

Chairman Kevin Ellis said the company "can't ignore market pressures and want to ensure pay at every level is as competitive as possible".

"We know pay will be an increasingly important consideration given rising living costs - we want to stay competitive and continue attracting the best talent and skills from across the UK," he added.

The company said it was investing more than £120m in pay rises, as well as allocating a further £138m to bonuses this year - up £10m on the previous year.

Other companies, such as Lloyds Bank, have offered staff one-off payments to help them cope with the rising cost of living.

However, Mr Ellis said base pay was "particularly important... given the bearing it can have on mortgages and future salary".

Earlier this week, a union representing Rolls-Royce workers rejected the company's offer of a £2,000 one-off payment, saying it fell "far short of the real cost of living challenges which our members are experiencing".

Other sectors have also increased pay in recent months, with supermarket chains Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda all announcing rises as they battle for staff.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, which was at the centre of last week's rail strikes, is looking for a pay rise of at least 7%.

The union says Network Rail's offer of a 2% pay rise, with the possibility of a further 1%, was "unacceptable", pointing to the rising cost of living.


In May, official figures showed there were more job vacancies than unemployed people in the UK for the first time since records began.

However, earlier this month, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Simon Clarke warned employees they should not expect their wages to rise in line with inflation.

He told the BBC big salary increases to meet the rising cost of living could end up with a 1970-style "inflationary spiral", where companies hike wages and then pass the cost on to customers through higher prices.

The independent public sector pay review bodies are due to report in the coming weeks on the level of increase for workers - including employees in health, schools and prisons.

Unions are pressing to have the pay increases reflect the rising cost of living.

But Mr Clarke, the Treasury minister in charge of the pay review body process, said there was no automatic link between inflation and pay setting.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
After 200,000 Orders in 2 Minutes: Xiaomi Accelerates Marketing in Europe
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×