Employment falls in West Essex as pay rises to £2,839 a month
WageSight Wire · Aug 2026
- Employment
- 149,933 workers (July 2026)
- Monthly change
- -0.1% (-193 workers)
- Annual change
- -0.4% (-550 workers)
- Median pay
- £2,839/month (YoY: +4.6%, £124 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +7.5% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£41 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in West Essex fell 0.4% over the year to July 2026, 550 fewer workers, with a further monthly dip of 0.1% sustaining the downward pressure.
Across the East of England, payrolled employment was broadly flat, down 0.2% over the year to July 2026. West Essex ranked 11th of 17 sub-regional areas in the East of England by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in West Essex stood at £2,839 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 West Essex are now £41 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £2,248 a month. The total pay bill in West Essex rose 7.5% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Nationally, 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 West Essex 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 West Essex 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
East of England — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luton | 108,575 | +0.6% | £2,514 | +5.4% |
| 2 | Thurrock | 85,596 | +0.2% | £2,801 | +4.1% |
| 3 | Essex Haven Gateway | 217,118 | +0.1% | £2,617 | +4.8% |
| 4 | Bedford | 89,230 | +0.0% | £2,712 | +4.3% |
| 5 | Central Bedfordshire | 142,908 | -0.1% | £2,903 | +4.3% |
| 6 | Peterborough | 103,729 | -0.1% | £2,486 | +5.2% |
| 7 | Breckland and South Norfolk | 123,482 | -0.1% | £2,561 | +4.5% |
| 8 | Essex Thames Gateway | 163,581 | -0.1% | £2,804 | +4.8% |
| 9 | West Suffolk | 78,525 | -0.2% | £2,613 | +4.5% |
| 10 | Norwich and East Norfolk | 165,370 | -0.2% | £2,443 | +4.5% |
| 11 | West Essex | 149,933 | -0.4% | £2,839 | +4.6% |
| 12 | Heart of Essex | 152,414 | -0.4% | £2,953 | +4.8% |
| 13 | Cambridgeshire CC | 321,140 | -0.5% | £2,874 | +4.2% |
| 14 | East Suffolk | 97,943 | -0.6% | £2,425 | +4.8% |
| 15 | Southend | 79,648 | -0.6% | £2,719 | +5.3% |
| 16 | Ipswich | 67,053 | -0.8% | £2,467 | +4.2% |
| 17 | North and West Norfolk | 97,369 | -1.0% | £2,398 | +4.9% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
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