Employment falls in Richmondshire as pay rises to £2,444 a month
WageSight Wire · Jul 2026
- Employment
- 25,138 workers (May 2026)
- Monthly change
- -0.5% (-116 workers)
- Annual change
- -3.1% (-815 workers)
- Median pay
- £2,444/month (YoY: +5.4%, £126 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +4.6% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£294 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in Richmondshire fell 3.1% over the year to May 2026, 815 fewer workers, with a further monthly dip of 0.5% sustaining the downward pressure.
Across Yorkshire and The Humber, payrolled employment edged down 0.3% over the year to May 2026. Richmondshire ranked 23rd of 23 towns and cities in Yorkshire and The Humber by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in Richmondshire stood at £2,444 in May 2026, up 5.4% over the past year and ahead of inflation at 2.97%. After a period of sharp inflation from 2022 that eroded real earnings, wages have been recovering. Workers in Richmondshire are now £294 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £1,646 a month. The total pay bill in Richmondshire rose 4.6% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Richmondshire's performance lagged behind the UK as a whole, where payrolled employment edged down 0.4% over the year to May 2026. Across the UK, 539,199 workers entered payrolled employment in April 2026, the most recently available flow data, while 591,851 left, a net loss of 52,652 workers.
“Employers in Richmondshire 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 Richmondshire 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
Yorkshire and The Humber — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | York | 93,957 | +0.4% | £2,535 | +5.0% |
| 2 | Hull | 122,685 | +0.3% | £2,386 | +4.6% |
| 3 | East Riding of Yorkshire | 148,170 | +0.3% | £2,523 | +4.8% |
| 4 | Craven | 23,554 | +0.0% | £2,441 | +5.0% |
| 5 | Kirklees | 185,526 | -0.1% | £2,430 | +4.4% |
| 6 | North Lincolnshire | 74,366 | -0.2% | £2,491 | +5.2% |
| 7 | Doncaster | 135,268 | -0.2% | £2,439 | +5.0% |
| 8 | Leeds | 373,554 | -0.2% | £2,560 | +4.5% |
| 9 | Sheffield | 242,117 | -0.2% | £2,463 | +4.6% |
| 10 | Sheffield | 242,117 | -0.2% | £2,463 | +4.6% |
| 11 | North East Lincolnshire | 68,446 | -0.2% | £2,359 | +5.0% |
| 12 | Selby | 42,726 | -0.4% | £2,691 | +4.4% |
| 13 | Bradford | 216,999 | -0.4% | £2,346 | +4.8% |
| 14 | Ryedale | 22,594 | -0.4% | £2,393 | +4.8% |
| 15 | Hambleton | 38,395 | -0.5% | £2,521 | +4.7% |
| 16 | Scarborough | 43,119 | -0.5% | £2,262 | +5.0% |
| 17 | Barnsley | 106,577 | -0.5% | £2,456 | +5.0% |
| 18 | Barnsley | 106,577 | -0.5% | £2,456 | +5.0% |
| 19 | Rotherham | 113,503 | -0.7% | £2,442 | +4.6% |
| 20 | Wakefield | 159,685 | -0.8% | £2,546 | +4.3% |
| 21 | Calderdale | 87,828 | -0.9% | £2,483 | +4.6% |
| 22 | Harrogate | 76,657 | -1.0% | £2,530 | +4.3% |
| 23 | Richmondshire | 25,138 | -3.1% | £2,444 | +5.4% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
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