To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average hourly pay was of the (a) (i) lowest and (ii) highest decile, (b) (i) lowest and (ii) highest quartile and (c) highest duo-decile of working age people in employment in each year since 1997. (135064)

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 30 April 2007:

The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the average hourly pay was of the (a) (i) lowest and (ii) highest decile, (b) (i) lowest and (ii) highest quartile and (c) highest duo-decile of working age people in employment in each year since 1997. I am replying in her absence. (135064)

Average levels of earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), and are provided for all employees on adult rates of pay whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence. This is the standard definition used for ASHE. The ASHE does not collect information on the self employed and people who do unpaid work.

I attach a table showing the 10th, 25th, 75th, 90th and 95th percentile of Gross Hourly Pay, corresponding to the lowest decile, lowest quartile, highest quartile, highest decile, and highest duo-decile respectively, for all employees, for the years 1997-2006.

The ASHE, carried out in April each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom. It is a one per cent sample of all employees who are members of pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) schemes.