Employment falls in Northumberland as pay rises to £2,486 a month
WageSight Wire · Aug 2026
- Employment
- 131,486 workers (July 2026)
- Monthly change
- -0.2% (-218 workers)
- Annual change
- -0.9% (-1,160 workers)
- Median pay
- £2,486/month (YoY: +4.6%, £110 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +5.2% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£86 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in Northumberland fell 0.9% over the year to July 2026, 1,160 fewer workers, with a further monthly dip of 0.2% sustaining the downward pressure.
Across the North East, payrolled employment edged down 0.4% over the year to July 2026. Northumberland ranked 7th of 7 sub-regional areas in the North East by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in Northumberland stood at £2,486 in July 2026, up 4.6% over the past year and ahead of inflation at 3.03%. After a period of sharp inflation from 2022 that eroded real earnings, wages have been recovering. Workers in Northumberland are now £86 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £1,911 a month. The total pay bill in Northumberland rose 5.2% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Northumberland's performance lagged behind the UK as a whole, where payrolled employment edged down 0.3% over the year to July 2026. Across the UK, 580,736 workers entered payrolled employment in June 2026, the most recently available flow data, while 594,229 left, a net loss of 13,493 workers.
“Latest figures show that employers in Northumberland have seen a dip in payroll compared to the same month last year. It's hard 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 Northumberland 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
North East — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darlington | 49,457 | +0.2% | £2,501 | +4.3% |
| 2 | Sunderland | 118,290 | +0.1% | £2,484 | +4.1% |
| 3 | Hartlepool and Stockton-on-Tees | 123,658 | -0.1% | £2,523 | +4.0% |
| 4 | Tyneside | 369,759 | -0.4% | £2,531 | +4.7% |
| 5 | County Durham | 211,110 | -0.5% | £2,497 | +4.6% |
| 6 | South Teesside | 117,255 | -0.7% | £2,433 | +4.8% |
| 7 | Northumberland | 131,486 | -0.9% | £2,486 | +4.6% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
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