Fermanagh incomes among lowest

Editorial Department • Published 26 Jan 2012 13:00 0 Comments

The figures will come as no surprise to many people bringing home a wage in Fermanagh. Workers in the county are among the poorest paid in Northern Ireland.

This is particularly so if the jobs are in the private sector and the jobs are generally of an unskilled nature. In many cases many of these people have not had significant pay rises for a number of years and with inflation running at three and four per cent, in reality many workers are actually having a pay cut.

With, as expected, the highest earners concentrated in the Belfast area, Fermanagh came second from the bottom of the league table with just Ballymoney having worse take home pay. In fact the median wage for men in Fermanagh is around £150 per week worse off than their counterparts in Belfast. That sum would go far for many families in this county.

Health professionals were way above most other occupations, topping the table on £902 per week with police, firemen and teachers with median wages of £804 and £704 per week. That is compared with unskilled workers such as factory and office staff, farm labourers and some sales staff who are on wages of between £157 to £191 per week.

These figures are cold comfort to many people here experiencing difficult times with prospects for many more months of depressed economic conditions to come. In a rural area such as Fermanagh, most people depend on their own cars for transport, unlike urban areas where the public has the use of a well regulated public transport service. On the face of it there are fewer job opportunities in a rural area such as Fermanagh with the absence of factories and larger places of employment.

If income figures are low, then families really need to look at their spending habits. What might be extravagant to some, could be essential for others. If the TV is the main form of entertainment instead of going out, then a satellite TV package might not look that expensive.

At the end of the day, if your work is valued, your employer might look favourably on you one day in the future.

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This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 26 Jan 12

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