Employment falls in Gwent Valleys as pay rises to £2,536 a month
WageSight Wire · Jul 2026
- Employment
- 142,784 workers (June 2026)
- Monthly change
- -0.1% (-76 workers)
- Annual change
- -0.2% (-230 workers)
- Median pay
- £2,536/month (YoY: +4.6%, £112 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +4.4% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£78 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in Gwent Valleys fell 0.2% over the year to June 2026, 230 fewer workers, with a further monthly dip of 0.1% sustaining the downward pressure.
Across Wales, payrolled employment was broadly flat, down 0.2% over the year to June 2026. Gwent Valleys ranked 8th of 10 sub-regional areas in Wales by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in Gwent Valleys stood at £2,536 in June 2026, up 4.6% over the past year and ahead of inflation at 2.82%. After a period of sharp inflation from 2022 that eroded real earnings, wages have been recovering. Workers in Gwent Valleys are now £78 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £1,967 a month. The total pay bill in Gwent Valleys rose 4.4% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Nationally, payrolled employment was broadly flat, down 0.2% over the year to June 2026. Across the UK, 599,257 workers entered payrolled employment in May 2026, the most recently available flow data, while 596,423 left, a net gain of 2,834 workers.
“Employers in Gwent Valleys have reported a significant dip in payroll in the latest figures. It's too early to tell if this is businesses bracing agains the impact of the current economic uncertainty on inflation. On the flip side, wages for those in work continues to surge. The positive story is that workers in Gwent Valleys are seeing their pay packets grow. That's money in people's pockets, and it matters for local businesses and public services. But there will be understandable concern at the employment picture.”
— Paul Hebden, Campaign Salience
Wales — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monmouthshire and Newport | 112,528 | +0.2% | £2,612 | +4.5% |
| 2 | Isle of Anglesey | 26,205 | +0.1% | £2,432 | +5.2% |
| 3 | Flintshire and Wrexham | 133,355 | +0.1% | £2,566 | +4.6% |
| 4 | Gwynedd | 48,866 | +0.0% | £2,335 | +4.5% |
| 5 | Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan | 220,500 | -0.1% | £2,598 | +4.8% |
| 6 | South West Wales | 147,736 | -0.1% | £2,365 | +4.8% |
| 7 | Conwy and Denbighshire | 84,254 | -0.2% | £2,385 | +5.0% |
| 8 | Gwent Valleys | 142,784 | -0.2% | £2,536 | +4.6% |
| 9 | Neath Port Talbot | 57,190 | -0.5% | £2,510 | +5.3% |
| 10 | Swansea | 101,044 | -1.1% | £2,469 | +5.5% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
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