More factories 'are freezing pay'

Recession is hitting the wages of factory workers in the UK

Tough times for the manufacturing industry mean a record number of companies are freezing salaries, a new survey indicates.

Pay data from the EEF, the manufacturers' organisation, reveals two-thirds of employers suspended pay increases in the three months to June.

Workers also saw historically low levels of average pay settlements.

The EEF says the survey is clear evidence that the economic downturn is hitting manufacturing hard.

The EEF's July Pay Bulletin was based on information from 240 pay settlements covering 55,405 employees.

David Yeandle, the head of employment policy at the EEF, said the figures also showed that manufacturers were trying to manage pay "far more flexibly" than they had done in previous recessions.

Nevertheless, the monthly pay settlement levels for both May and June were both below 0.5%.

This means it is likely that average settlement levels in manufacturing will continue to fall in the near future, the EEF says.