NEW research has revealed that workers in Aberdeen are the richest in the UK, while those in Glasgow and Edinburgh are among the poorest.
A new study carried out by the UK’s leading independent job board CV-Library and property portal Zoopla compared the same basic living costs against average salaries in Scotland’s key cities.
It showed that UK professionals working in Aberdeen are officially the richest workers in Britain in 2020, with the highest disposable income thanks to strong salaries and lower living costs.
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The data also indicated workers in its sister cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow receive the fourth and sixth lowest disposable incomes, respectively.
The highest average monthly salary in the UK is earned by workers in London, followed closely by those in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.
However, Aberdeen is the cheapest city to rent in throughout Scotland, and is the second cheapest city across the whole of the UK, whereas Edinburgh has the most expensive living costs in Scotland, and the third highest living costs across the UK.
Richest to poorest UK workers:
The study also explored the average cost of purchasing a one-bed flat in each of these cities and reveals the percentage of monthly income that would need to be spent on mortgage repayments is highest in Edinburgh (39.5%).
This number drops to 21.1 per cent in Glasgow and 16.2 per cent in Aberdeen.
Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library said: “We conduct this analysis on an annual basis and our findings highlight a clear divide between Edinburgh and the other Scottish cities.
"While salaries have dropped across the board, living costs have continued to rise in Edinburgh, causing professionals to have less disposable income than a year ago.
“What’s more, the onset of COVID-19 means that many Scottish professionals have faced redundancy or were placed on the government’s Job Retention Scheme, and received only 80% of their salary.
"This has made it that much harder for workers to make ends meet.”
The study is conducted on an annual basis and reveals some fluctuations in findings over the past 12 months.
Disposable income has increased by 3.3 per cent in Aberdeen, and 1.1 per cent in Glasgow.
However, it has dropped by 4.9 per cent in Edinburgh.
Mr Biggins added: “Despite the current economic climate, businesses in Scotland should still be able to offer fair pay. As such, it’s important that you know the average salary you’ll need to earn in order to cover all of your living costs when applying for new roles.
“If you’ve been made redundant or have been placed on furlough, it may be tempting to try and negotiate a higher-than-average wage when returning to work.
"However, it’s vital to remember that many companies will also be struggling to stay afloat during this challenging time.
"Therefore, try to agree on a fair wage for both parties when negotiating the terms of your employment.”
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