27 Jul 2008

Low-skilled wages falling, according to study

8:47 am on 27 July 2008

A survey of pay rates suggests wages for low-skilled jobs are falling.

The auction website TradeMe looked at 73,000 jobs and found that in the first half of this year salaries for IT professionals, building project managers and doctors were highest.

Wage rates for data entry, counsellors, solicitors and primary teachers saw the fastest increase.

But the Council of Trade Unions economist, Peter Conway, says pay rates for positions such as kitchen and waiting staff and cleaners have actually dropped.

He says the data tallies with Statistics New Zealand's Quarterly Employment Survey.