Bankers’ bonuses have increased by 101% since 2008 and now average £20,000, according to the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
The analysis found that the average bonus increased by £5,000 last year alone, having been worth less than £15,000 in 2021.
The chancellor's September mini-budget saw plans announced to deregulate the sector and scrap the EU-set cap on bankers’ bonuses, which are currently limited to 100% of their fixed pay.
Seventy-three per cent of Europe’s millionaire bankers live in the UK, according to the European Banking Authority, leading the TUC to call it the “millionaires’ playground”.
Comparing average wages in other professions, TUC found bankers bonuses alone to be worth 115% of the salary of someone working full time on minimum wage, as well as 65% of a nurse’s yearly income.
“Everyone who works for a living deserves to earn a decent living, but ministers are holding down the pay of millions of key workers, while lining the pockets of City financiers,” said TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady.
Unite union general secretary Sharon Graham added: “Some companies in banking and insurance have been profiteering on the back of inflation after having already been making massive profits year on year. Now this government has removed the cap on mega-bonuses for bankers that was meant to help prevent us having to pay for another crash like 2008.”