To date detailed analyses of geographical variations in earnings and incomes in Great Britain have been frustrated by a lack of spatially disaggregated data. The author reviews the scope, strengths, and weaknesses of available data sources and outlines some of the methodologies used to generate estimates of earnings and incomes at the local level. An overview is provided of the main regional and subregional patterns of ‘raw’ earnings differentials and of the underlying ‘deep wage structure’—once variations in workforce composition have been controlled for. A distinctive regional pattern with the highest wages in London and the South East is evident, although there are also some significant variations in wage levels between neighbouring local areas within regions. As the demand for spatially disaggregated data on earnings and incomes remains unsatisfied despite recent increases in data supply, important concerns about the quality of the information remain.
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