Sub-contractor Pay Trends June 2020
Demand for groundworkers points to v-shaped recovery
Hudson Contract delivers the most accurate indications of pay trends across the construction industry, using monthly payroll data for more than 2,500 construction companies to publish the average pay for a spectrum of 17 different trades now split across ten regions.
Demand for groundworkers, a leading indicator of housebuilding activity, has passed the pre-lockdown peak, suggesting a V-shaped recovery is on the cards for the UK construction sector.
As the industry’s biggest payer of subcontractors, our data shows the number of groundworks operatives paid last week reached 6,467.
This compares to the previous high of 6,261 in the week commencing March 16 and the low of 1,735 in the week commencing April 20.
Groundworkers typically prepare construction sites for the shallow foundations of new homes.
Ian Anfield, managing director, said: “Every trade follows the groundworkers so they are the best indicator of what is happening.
“We are quite surprised at these findings because a number of our large clients have not yet returned to full capacity with their labour needs.
“But many smaller construction firms are very busy as a result of pent-up demand to complete smaller housing developments.
“Our field agents tell us that housebuilding activity is recovering strongly in places like Greater Manchester but more slowly in the East Midlands.
“Interestingly, we paid more operatives with Leicester postcodes after the second lockdown was announced than we did before the measures were reintroduced.”
Overall, labour demand dropped to 30 per cent of capacity during April but has now recovered to 74 per cent, according to Hudson.
Meanwhile, earnings for subcontractors continued to recover last month.
Analysis of Hudson payroll data for more than 2,500 construction companies shows average weekly earnings of £848 for freelancers in June, compared to £827 in May and £734 in April.
The best-performing regions for earnings growth were the South West (+12 per cent), London (+7.4 per cent) and the North East (+4.4 per cent).
| Region | June 2020 Average | Month on Month % Change | Year on Year % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East | £760 | 4.4% | -1.3% |
| North West | £807 | 1.5% | -4.8% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | £761 | 1.1% | -9.6% |
| East Midlands | £816 | 0.2% | -7.6% |
| West Midlands | £887 | -2.2% | -4.7% |
| Wales | £817 | 0.1% | 0.6% |
| East of England | £896 | 2.3% | -3.7% |
| London | £925 | 7.4% | 1.2% |
| South East | £889 | 1.5% | -1.7% |
| South West | £878 | 12.0% | 9.6% |
To access Hudson Contract’s 今日看料 Pay Trends index, please
North East
| NORTH EAST | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £798 | £1,416 | £827 | £798 | £708 | £636 | 拢682 | £786 |
| ELECTRICAL | £854 | - | £1,427 | £909 | £774 | £583 | 拢788 | £766 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £739 | £986 | £1,121 | £656 | £618 | - | 拢628 | £667 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £834 | £1,081 | £723 | £737 | £707 | £583 | 拢633 | £665 |
| INSULATION | £732 | £1,123 | £768 | £817 | £780 | £503 | 拢801 | £768 |
| JOINERY | £732 | £750 | £717 | £619 | £281 | 拢557 | £666 | |
| PLASTERING | £747 | £600 | £702 | £739 | £696 | £680 | 拢627 | £621 |
| ROOFING | £964 | £677 | £748 | £773 | £855 | £463 | 拢1,085 | £943 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £405 | £569 | £217 | £392 | £398 | 拢430 | £422 | |
| SHOP FITTING | £689 | - | £680 | £723 | £683 | £662 | 拢893 | £1,019 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £872 | £754 | £588 | £604 | £669 | £560 | 拢602 | £737 |
North West
| NORTH WEST | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £762 | £908 | £741 | £809 | £720 | £684 | 拢731 | £714 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £786 | £1,038 | £803 | £794 | £775 | £582 | 拢780 | £793 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £765 | £808 | £799 | £795 | £777 | £563 | 拢748 | £671 |
| ELECTRICAL | £935 | £1,082 | £868 | £891 | £931 | £695 | 拢779 | £846 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £689 | £667 | £931 | £731 | £739 | £701 | 拢783 | £755 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £1,032 | £917 | £992 | £1,076 | £1,022 | £920 | 拢910 | £977 |
| INSULATION | £700 | £1,156 | £614 | £802 | £684 | £423 | 拢544 | £758 |
| JOINERY | £1,191 | £571 | £1,121 | £1,184 | £1,154 | £799 | 拢1,178 | £1,218 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,175 | £979 | £1,270 | £1,067 | £1,037 | £878 | 拢669 | £813 |
| PLASTERING | £681 | £770 | £653 | £596 | £724 | £713 | 拢533 | £410 |
| PLUMBING | £986 | £857 | £729 | £893 | £861 | £1,329 | 拢890 | £808 |
| ROOFING | £967 | £874 | £882 | £860 | £918 | £719 | 拢883 | £846 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £708 | £1,140 | £700 | £673 | £590 | £531 | 拢618 | £648 |
| SHOP FITTING | £1,177 | £987 | £1,065 | £1,190 | £1,053 | £451 | 拢1,103 | £914 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £795 | £1,018 | £768 | £813 | £772 | £711 | 拢764 | £732 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £645 | £558 | £614 | £613 | £678 | £273 | 拢635 | £528 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £1,012 | £802 | £788 | £969 | £943 | £705 | 拢816 | £894 |
Yorkshire & Humber
| YORKSHIRE & HUMBER | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £740 | £948 | £690 | £715 | £820 | £621 | 拢709 | £708 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £828 | £1,114 | £834 | £833 | £990 | £674 | 拢749 | £743 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £810 | £865 | £886 | £815 | £589 | £646 | 拢609 | £754 |
| ELECTRICAL | £988 | £868 | £899 | £920 | £1,385 | £799 | 拢732 | £823 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £890 | £883 | £808 | £846 | £779 | £707 | 拢809 | £808 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £832 | £888 | £822 | £830 | £920 | £707 | 拢768 | £765 |
| INSULATION | £762 | £976 | £653 | £790 | £869 | £559 | 拢710 | £685 |
| JOINERY | £738 | £802 | £754 | £779 | £1,161 | £497 | 拢694 | £709 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,100 | £690 | £939 | £972 | £1,343 | £572 | 拢787 | £829 |
| PLASTERING | £809 | £1,241 | £815 | £831 | £669 | £696 | 拢890 | £787 |
| PLUMBING | £782 | £839 | £876 | £831 | £992 | £566 | 拢592 | £685 |
| ROOFING | £673 | £906 | £699 | £679 | £577 | £527 | 拢597 | £567 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £550 | £921 | £524 | £512 | £700 | £543 | 拢596 | £559 |
| SHOP FITTING | £1,378 | £718 | £1,236 | £1,433 | £1,623 | £439 | 拢915 | £1,021 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £854 | £880 | £1,038 | £777 | £898 | £736 | 拢759 | £677 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £956 | £432 | £964 | £1,195 | - | £845 | 拢1,062 | £1,026 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £869 | £865 | £692 | £797 | £844 | £675 | 拢688 | £761 |
East Midlands
| EAST MIDLANDS | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £849 | £1,238 | £895 | £905 | £859 | £615 | £699 | £737 |
| ELECTRICAL | £977 | £640 | £880 | £970 | £749 | £831 | 拢875 | £827 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £1,120 | £1,067 | £1,010 | £1,114 | £1,042 | £928 | 拢833 | £759 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £1,037 | £1,064 | £1,038 | £1,023 | £1,001 | £842 | 拢987 | £934 |
| INSULATION | £927 | £1,300 | £848 | £901 | £840 | £980 | 拢721 | £790 |
| JOINERY | £801 | - | £810 | £775 | £836 | £635 | 拢681 | £763 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,824 | £1,061 | £1,855 | £1,826 | £1,558 | £1,532 | 拢1,334 | £1,378 |
| PLASTERING | £827 | £829 | £939 | £848 | £760 | £639 | 拢723 | £751 |
| PLUMBING | £882 | £978 | £1,240 | £1,339 | £1,072 | £956 | 拢968 | £973 |
| ROOFING | £934 | £1,125 | £937 | £932 | £844 | £642 | 拢729 | £695 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £860 | £1,052 | £778 | £848 | £785 | £518 | 拢678 | £728 |
| SHOP FITTING | £692 | - | £1,763 | £1,011 | £1,171 | £982 | 拢823 | £662 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £828 | £1,048 | £980 | £853 | £902 | £795 | 拢817 | £811 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £968 | - | £617 | £890 | £673 | £678 | 拢537 | £645 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £948 | £1,261 | £975 | £982 | £894 | £714 | 拢805 | £806 |
West Midlands
| WEST MIDLANDS | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £975 | £1,210 | £879 | £866 | £716 | £728 | 拢969 | £884 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £987 | £1,096 | £925 | £1,003 | £821 | £652 | 拢866 | £858 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £657 | £1,009 | £676 | £681 | £779 | £758 | 拢599 | £642 |
| ELECTRICAL | £1,245 | £927 | £1,423 | £1,279 | £1,120 | £1,143 | 拢1,126 | £1,217 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £948 | £1,238 | £920 | £952 | £761 | £764 | 拢811 | £828 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £915 | £1,115 | £1,125 | £957 | £789 | £620 | 拢809 | £813 |
| INSULATION | £845 | £1,859 | £762 | £861 | £733 | £888 | 拢1,034 | £775 |
| JOINERY | £1,124 | £689 | £1,256 | £1,070 | £644 | £706 | 拢1,026 | £1,114 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,574 | £649 | £1,540 | £1,863 | £992 | £1,074 | 拢1,960 | £1,306 |
| PLASTERING | £635 | £699 | £745 | £629 | £747 | £636 | 拢711 | £700 |
| PLUMBING | £1,183 | £699 | £1,484 | £1,151 | £789 | £945 | 拢1,043 | £748 |
| ROOFING | £578 | £1,076 | £596 | £578 | £677 | £439 | 拢531 | £539 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £634 | £1,233 | £720 | £673 | £544 | £608 | 拢653 | £646 |
| SHOP FITTING | £1,239 | £630 | £1,597 | £1,223 | £1,132 | £493 | 拢1,262 | £1,611 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £1,022 | £1,062 | £733 | £1,012 | £787 | £744 | 拢799 | £926 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £853 | £1,009 | £697 | £790 | £961 | £685 | 拢677 | £708 |
Wales
| WALES | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £767 | £957 | £769 | £781 | £766 | £682 | 拢759 | £778 |
| ELECTRICAL | £918 | £882 | £894 | £991 | £990 | - | 拢966 | £406 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £1,263 | £766 | £1,760 | £1,193 | £1,578 | £1,300 | 拢1,308 | £1,300 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £907 | £905 | £875 | £915 | £892 | £712 | 拢825 | £800 |
| JOINERY | £953 | - | £569 | £429 | £530 | £638 | - | - |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | - | - | £662 | £689 | £762 | £411 | 拢580 | £427 |
| PLASTERING | £1,505 | £585 | £1,260 | £1,365 | £1,225 | - | 拢1,400 | £1,260 |
| PLUMBING | £914 | £1,445 | £870 | £986 | £971 | £720 | 拢592 | £859 |
| ROOFING | £551 | £836 | £467 | £550 | £509 | £366 | 拢607 | - |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £730 | £814 | £688 | £691 | £621 | £477 | 拢520 | £556 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £812 | £959 | £810 | £867 | £910 | £583 | 拢791 | £795 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £1,002 | £705 | £749 | £659 | £909 | £436 | 拢980 | £840 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £1,185 | £982 | £1,320 | £733 | £1,392 | £795 | 拢600 | - |
East of England
| EAST OF ENGLAND | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £804 | £1,435 | £783 | £791 | £737 | £666 | 拢738 | £680 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £959 | £1,307 | £979 | £978 | £912 | £575 | 拢829 | £784 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £781 | £942 | £831 | £836 | £790 | £715 | 拢714 | £713 |
| ELECTRICAL | £1,451 | £709 | £1,476 | £1,465 | £1,492 | £1,174 | 拢1,295 | £1,344 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £908 | £953 | £1,032 | £985 | £966 | £744 | 拢928 | £931 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £962 | £848 | £943 | £973 | £911 | £765 | 拢857 | £851 |
| INSULATION | £1,012 | £905 | £936 | £997 | £937 | £684 | 拢1,047 | £952 |
| JOINERY | £1,200 | £955 | £1,363 | £1,264 | £1,247 | £1,527 | 拢884 | £1,168 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,181 | £829 | £1,155 | £1,067 | £1,063 | £787 | 拢920 | £1,102 |
| PLASTERING | £872 | £943 | £887 | £879 | £969 | £853 | 拢1,013 | £815 |
| PLUMBING | £1,324 | £1,120 | £1,420 | £1,306 | £1,298 | £1,079 | 拢979 | £1,039 |
| ROOFING | £806 | £970 | £777 | £814 | £851 | £740 | 拢755 | £796 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £918 | £977 | £903 | £914 | £793 | £711 | 拢730 | £745 |
| SHOP FITTING | £1,192 | £708 | £1,095 | £1,698 | £1,492 | £1,486 | 拢1,133 | £1,424 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £819 | £1,055 | £832 | £843 | £775 | £584 | 拢736 | £754 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £686 | - | £639 | £728 | £697 | £392 | 拢780 | £641 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £735 | £907 | £706 | £741 | £670 | £459 | 拢623 | £626 |
London
| LONDON | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £750 | £1,042 | £714 | £750 | £704 | £643 | 拢741 | £746 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £840 | £1,121 | £821 | £838 | £830 | £635 | 拢798 | £806 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £808 | £885 | - | - | - | - | - | £651 |
| ELECTRICAL | £1,023 | £929 | £1,297 | £1,075 | £966 | £730 | 拢807 | £1,037 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £765 | £978 | £867 | £812 | £894 | £531 | 拢671 | £681 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £1,068 | £868 | £1,229 | £1,104 | £1,105 | £935 | 拢924 | £1,012 |
| INSULATION | £896 | £517 | £1,710 | £765 | £806 | £1,370 | 拢711 | £872 |
| JOINERY | £1,158 | £1,763 | £1,173 | £1,170 | £963 | £789 | 拢643 | £767 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £991 | £1,024 | £1,290 | £942 | £918 | £925 | 拢1,040 | £1,185 |
| PLASTERING | £695 | £878 | £643 | £779 | £743 | - | - | - |
| PLUMBING | £1,117 | £914 | £1,489 | £1,204 | £1,158 | £914 | 拢1,161 | £1,158 |
| ROOFING | £916 | £1,001 | £838 | £937 | £879 | £766 | 拢722 | £858 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £1,033 | £1,107 | £1,012 | £961 | £836 | £727 | 拢820 | £908 |
| SHOP FITTING | £838 | £1,549 | £1,984 | £809 | £766 | £947 | 拢1,244 | £1,101 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £1,122 | £1,124 | £1,079 | £1,100 | £973 | £934 | 拢924 | £973 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £582 | - | £823 | £669 | £662 | £776 | 拢700 | £1,047 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £575 | £817 | £467 | £525 | £500 | - | - | £566 |
South East
| SOUTH EAST | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £820 | £1,234 | £778 | £798 | £726 | £650 | 拢846 | £943 |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £828 | £1,192 | £841 | £836 | £816 | £589 | 拢753 | £785 |
| DEMOLITION & WRECKING | £1,241 | £905 | £1,031 | £1,221 | £1,207 | £1,012 | 拢1,070 | £1,188 |
| ELECTRICAL | £1,318 | £1,138 | £1,481 | £1,337 | £1,447 | £950 | 拢1,191 | £1,220 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £870 | £869 | £891 | £933 | £908 | £722 | 拢803 | £777 |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £889 | £1,014 | £925 | £899 | £835 | £767 | 拢831 | £842 |
| INSULATION | - | £369 | £950 | £950 | £997 | £712 | 拢902 | £902 |
| JOINERY | £1,042 | £693 | £1,120 | £1,028 | £950 | £929 | 拢1,065 | £1,206 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £1,061 | £842 | £1,497 | £1,099 | £1,058 | £654 | 拢1,193 | £1,051 |
| PLASTERING | £683 | £970 | £777 | £775 | £739 | £325 | 拢673 | £727 |
| PLUMBING | £1,111 | £861 | £1,286 | £1,118 | £918 | £1,004 | 拢781 | £940 |
| ROOFING | £799 | £1,011 | £786 | £775 | £719 | £614 | 拢708 | £751 |
| SCAFFOLDING & LIFTING | £834 | £949 | £810 | £844 | £796 | £625 | 拢666 | £674 |
| SHOP FITTING | £1,357 | £676 | £1,171 | £1,264 | £1,321 | £827 | 拢1,972 | £1,096 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £872 | £1,067 | £867 | £881 | £820 | £1,068 | 拢742 | £747 |
| STEEL & TIMBER FRAME ERECTION | £766 | £1,210 | £782 | £807 | £786 | £664 | 拢723 | £762 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £946 | £997 | £804 | £960 | £879 | £768 | 拢594 | £609 |
South West
| SOUTH WEST | Nov-19 | Dec-19 | Jan-20 | Feb-20 | Mar-20 | Apr-20 | May-20 | Jun-20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRICKLAYING | £1,474 | £949 | £1,289 | £1,735 | £1,615 | £726 | 拢540 | - |
| CIVIL ENGINEERING | £808 | £832 | £757 | £800 | £768 | £608 | 拢775 | £722 |
| ELECTRICAL | £750 | £720 | £822 | £779 | £744 | £585 | 拢655 | £719 |
| EQUIPMENT & OPERATOR HIRE | £676 | £820 | £891 | £938 | £937 | £862 | - | - |
| GENERAL CONSTRUCTION | £862 | £871 | £978 | £876 | £829 | £744 | 拢854 | £848 |
| INSULATION | £1,243 | £848 | £1,260 | £1,300 | £1,262 | £1,125 | 拢1,201 | £1,442 |
| JOINERY | £1,076 | £1,386 | £1,321 | £1,155 | £1,036 | £723 | 拢898 | £1,018 |
| MECHANICAL & ENGINEERING | £687 | £934 | £657 | £723 | £713 | £437 | 拢678 | £726 |
| PLASTERING | £809 | £1,138 | £677 | £682 | £591 | £531 | 拢687 | £703 |
| PLUMBING | £1,764 | £932 | £1,335 | £1,750 | £1,650 | £699 | - | £1,729 |
| ROOFING | £856 | £798 | £760 | £847 | £787 | £527 | 拢772 | £784 |
| SPECIALIST TRADES | £740 | £996 | £1,253 | £424 | £999 | £656 | 拢774 | £1,096 |
| SURFACING CONTRACTORS | £654 | £913 | £683 | £676 | £664 | £574 | 拢607 | £591 |