Employment falls in Westminster as pay rises to £3,935 a month
WageSight Wire · Jul 2026
- Employment
- 96,698 workers (May 2026)
- Monthly change
- -0.2% (-187 workers)
- Annual change
- -2.3% (-2,285 workers)
- Median pay
- £3,935/month (YoY: +6.3%, £234 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +9.5% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£75 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in Westminster fell 2.3% over the year to May 2026, 2,285 fewer workers, with a further monthly dip of 0.2% sustaining the downward pressure.
Across London, payrolled employment edged down 1% over the year to May 2026. Westminster ranked 32nd of 33 towns and cities in London by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in Westminster stood at £3,935 in May 2026, up 6.3% 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 Westminster are now £75 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £3,109 a month. The total pay bill in Westminster rose 9.5% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Westminster'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 Westminster 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 Westminster 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
London — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barking and Dagenham | 106,880 | +0.7% | £2,561 | +4.7% |
| 2 | Newham | 193,059 | +0.6% | £2,645 | +4.4% |
| 3 | Greenwich | 146,824 | +0.3% | £3,107 | +4.4% |
| 4 | Sutton | 99,660 | +0.1% | £3,074 | +4.2% |
| 5 | Bexley | 118,937 | +0.0% | £2,995 | +4.3% |
| 6 | Hounslow | 148,538 | -0.5% | £2,793 | +3.9% |
| 7 | Redbridge | 148,117 | -0.6% | £2,703 | +4.7% |
| 8 | Croydon | 192,069 | -0.7% | £2,958 | +4.7% |
| 9 | Havering | 121,301 | -0.7% | £2,950 | +4.5% |
| 10 | Bromley | 152,611 | -0.7% | £3,385 | +4.4% |
| 11 | Kingston Upon Thames | 80,348 | -0.8% | £3,192 | +4.1% |
| 12 | Wandsworth | 177,320 | -0.8% | £3,984 | +4.6% |
| 13 | Merton | 105,978 | -0.8% | £3,253 | +4.7% |
| 14 | Harrow | 124,681 | -0.9% | £2,803 | +4.7% |
| 15 | Richmond Upon Thames | 87,309 | -1.0% | £3,760 | +4.3% |
| 16 | Lewisham | 149,295 | -1.1% | £3,165 | +4.0% |
| 17 | Southwark | 165,037 | -1.1% | £3,414 | +4.6% |
| 18 | Tower Hamlets | 170,406 | -1.1% | £3,311 | +4.2% |
| 19 | Hillingdon | 149,613 | -1.1% | £2,841 | +4.4% |
| 20 | Hackney | 133,062 | -1.2% | £3,127 | +5.1% |
| 21 | Waltham Forest | 136,350 | -1.2% | £3,038 | +5.4% |
| 22 | Barnet | 174,387 | -1.3% | £2,916 | +4.8% |
| 23 | Islington | 109,627 | -1.4% | £3,750 | +5.1% |
| 24 | Ealing | 180,829 | -1.4% | £2,905 | +4.6% |
| 25 | Hammersmith and Fulham | 93,938 | -1.4% | £3,642 | +4.6% |
| 26 | Lambeth | 169,995 | -1.5% | £3,479 | +4.0% |
| 27 | Enfield | 145,045 | -1.7% | £2,596 | +4.1% |
| 28 | Camden | 97,256 | -1.8% | £3,610 | +5.9% |
| 29 | Haringey | 130,693 | -1.9% | £2,932 | +5.0% |
| 30 | Brent | 168,897 | -2.2% | £2,721 | +5.3% |
| 31 | City of London | 10,167 | -2.3% | £6,288 | +4.1% |
| 32 | Westminster | 96,698 | -2.3% | £3,935 | +6.3% |
| 33 | Kensington and Chelsea | 58,918 | -2.5% | £3,874 | +5.0% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
WageSight's newswire places sourced local economic stories — with expert comment — in front of news desks across the UK. To discuss providing commentary for stories in your area or sector, contact [email protected].