WORKERS typically reach the peak of their earning power at the age of 38, official statistics show.

People now have to wait nearly a decade longer to reach the height of their earnings than they did in the 1970s, according to an Office for National Statistics (ONS) report, although in real terms they are paid more when they reach this peak.

The report said that in 2013, the people with the highest average wages were aged 38 years old and they earned £13.93 per hour typically. In 1975, the group with the highest average earnings were 29-year-olds, although they typically earned less at their peak when inflation is taken into account than people do today.

The earnings of men and women peak at very different stages of their lives. A woman will typically reach the height of her earning power at 34, when she is earning about £13.19 per hour, while a man will see his earning power peak at 50, when he is earning £15.54 per hour on average.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "Now the economy is growing again, the priority must be a pay rise for Britain's workers."