Unite’s Sharon Graham says the union will continue to base claims on the RPI figure rather than CPI because it better reflects the actual price rises experienced by Unite members. In the future Unite will also develop its own ‘Bargaining Index’.

Speaking on today’s inflation figures, Sharon Graham said:

“Today’s rise in inflation reflects a growing crisis in the cost of living for ordinary families. Energy prices - the cost of gas and electricity - and shortages are major factors in today’s figures. So, workers’ wages will have to at least match the inflation rate because otherwise they will be facing a calamitous drop in their standard of living. Unite is now focussed on defending workers’ jobs pay and conditions, which includes making sure workers do not pay the price of the pandemic.”

In recent months, Unite has won more than 25 pay claims above the current inflation rate when workers took industrial action or voted for it. Time after time, employers increased their initial pay offer when faced with workers’ claims, proving they had the money to pay more in the first place.

Sharon Graham challenges the use of the CPI instead of RPI by the Office of National Statistics as potentially “a hidden tax on workers’ wages”. The ONS CPI figure for October is 4.2 per cent while the ONS RPI figure is 6 per cent.

Sharon Graham said:

“The RPI, which includes housing costs, is a more accurate cost of living index than the CPI, which is always lower as it does not include housing and related costs. Employers favour the CPI as it creates a lower base rate for inflation as an element in possible wage claims. In that respect, the CPI is a hidden tax on workers’ wages if it is used as a base for cost calculations. That’s why in future Unite is going to produce its own calculations of price inflation - in what might be determined a Unite Bargaining Index - so that the base level for wage bargaining is much more accurate.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

The ONS figure for RPI is 6 per cent.

See figures here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/timeseries/czbh/mm23

House prices and mortgages:

The average house price has hit a record high of £270,000 after surging by £28,000 over the past year, official figures show.

Across the UK, property values increased by 11.8 per cent over the year to September, accelerating from 10.2 per cent annual growth in August, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

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Unite is the leading union in the UK and Ireland, dedicated to defending and improving members' jobs, pay and conditions. The general secretary is Sharon Graham.