1.
Forging ahead or falling behind?
Past, present and the future of living
standards in the Sheffield City Region
Craig Berry, Deputy Director at SPERI
Dan Jarvis, MP for Barnsley Central
Julie A Kenny CBE DL, Entrepreneur
Emma Stone, Director of Policy and Research at Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Stephen Clarke, Research and Policy Analyst at the Resolution Foundation
Torsten Bell, Director of the Resolution Foundation
@resfoundation // #MetroMayor

2.
Forging ahead or falling behind?
Past, present and the future of living
standards in the Sheffield City Region
Stephen Clarke
January 2017
@stephenlclarke / @resfoundation
2

3.
A disclaimer
3
In this research we have included in the
Sheffield City Region the original four areas:
• Barnsley
• Doncaster
• Rotherham
• Sheffield
And
• Bassetlaw
• Chesterfield

4.
THE PAST
4

5.
Industrial upheaval had a big impact upon the region,
but by the early 1990s employment rate was similar
to those in other cities
5

6.
The 2000s was a period of strong economic growth
6

7.
Growth was powered by service industries in
particular
7

8.
Growth was powered by service industries in
particular
8
Health, social work,
construction and
education were all
big contributors to
economic growth
during the period
Manufacturing
shrank, but less so
than the in the rest
of the country

9.
THE PRESENT
9

10.
Sheffield’s recovery from the crisis has been sluggish
10

11.
People are in work, but pay is low
11

12.
The typical worker in the region takes home £43 less
a week than a typical employee in the UK. A pay gap
that is present in most parts of the region
12

13.
THE PAY GAP
1. WHO WORKS AND WHERETHEY WORK
2. HOWTHEY WORK (PRODUCTIVITY)
13

14.
The pay gap is partly because the region has
relatively more firms that tend to pay low – dragging
down overall pay
14
Manufacturing is a
big employer in the
region. 1.6% more
people are
employed in the
sector compared to
other city regions

15.
The pay gap is partly because the region has
relatively more firms that tend to pay low – dragging
down overall pay
15
Hourly pay in
manufacturing in
the region is about
£2 lower than the
pay of the average
UK worker

16.
It is also because the region has more workers with
lower education levels, who tend to be paid less
16

17.
Productivity explains the other half of the pay gap
17

18.
Productivity is lower in most sectors
18

19.
Productivity is lower in most sectors
19
The majority of
sectors contribute
to the region’s
productivity deficit,
but particularly the
large sectors of
retail,
manufacturing and
office admin
Only in education is
productivity
significantly higher

20.
Low pay acts as a drag on household incomes,
although employment and low housing costs offset
this
20

21.
Although as with pay, household incomes vary across
the region
21

22.
THE FUTURE?
22

23.
The NLW will reduce the number of low paid workers
in the region
23
‘Low paid’ refers to
anyone paid below
two-thirds of the
median wage

24.
But will bring with it new challenges – particularly the
need to help workers progress off the wage floor
24

25.
In some sectors nearly 7 in 10 workers may be paid
the legal minimum by 2020
25

26.
MISSING OUT ON THE
NORTHERN POWERHOUSE?
26

27.
The region needs to get devolution back on track and
take steps to raise pay
27
Priority 1: The form, powers and geography of
devolution is a local decision, but opportunity
should not be missed.
Priority 2: Set up Sheffield Low Pay
Commission to tackle low pay in the retail and
leisure sectors in particular.
Priority 3: Build on existing strengths,
particularly growing student population

28.
Forging ahead or falling behind?
Past, present and the future of living
standards in the Sheffield City Region
Craig Berry, Deputy Director at SPERI
Dan Jarvis, MP for Barnsley Central
Julie A Kenny CBE DL, Entrepreneur
Emma Stone, Director of Policy and Research at Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Stephen Clarke, Research and Policy Analyst at the Resolution Foundation
Torsten Bell, Director of the Resolution Foundation
@resfoundation // #MetroMayor