The incomes of those in their 60s and 70s have continued to rise since the recession. In contrast, median (middle) income among people in their 20s fell by 12% between 2007-08 and 2011-12, after adjusting for inflation - the largest fall of any age group.
These differences amongst age groups are not new, but reflect longer-term trends. Median income for people in their 20s had not grown in the six years before the recession, between 2001-02 and 2007-08. Pensioners, on the other hand, have consistently seen faster income growth than other family types and age groups over the past thirty years.
These are among the findings of a new report by IFS researchers published today: Living Standards, Poverty and Inequality in the UK: 2013, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The research is based on the government's Households Below Average Income data, an analysis of which was published yesterday by the Department for Work and Pensions.
Key findings for the population as a whole include:
- Average incomes fell again in 2011-12, reaching 7.2% below their 2009-10 peak at the mean and 5.8% below their 2009-10 peak at the median.
- Income inequality changed little in 2011-12 but remained significantly lower than before the start of the recession.
- Relative poverty also changed little in 2011-12, remaining more than a million below its pre-recession level - its lowest level since 1986. Numbers in ‘absolute poverty', however, rose.
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