”Across the UK, manufacturing workers earn £1 an hour more, on average, than comparable workers in other industries. That pay premium is significantly higher in some parts of the country than it is in others. For example, workers employed in manufacturing firms in the North East and North West earn around £2.50 more per hour than people employed in other industries – worth £95 per week to somebody on a full time contract.
Alongside wages, we also found that productivity is higher in some parts of the UK than others. Outside London, output per hour in manufacturing was a fifth higher than the economy as whole. In growing the economies of areas like the North West, West Midlands and Wales, manufacturing is doing much of the leg work. Between 1997 and 2017, manufacturing made up around 40 per cent of overall productivity growth in those areas.
For these reasons, manufacturing is likely to be particularly important for the levelling up agenda. One way the Government could show it is serious is by launching a National Plan for Manufacturing. This could set out tax incentives for capital investment; take action to reduce industrial electricity costs; introduce greater 5G connectivity for smart factories, and include long-term funding for manufacturing R&D institutions.”
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