Labour market power is increasingly in the spotlight of academic research and competition agencies. But what do we know about labour market power in the UK? How has it evolved over the last two decades? How is it distributed across labour markets? How is it related to worker outcomes? And how is it affected by recent changes in technology and labour market institutions? The seminar presents findings from the Competition and Market Authority’s recent report on Competition and market power in UK labour markets. The report finds stable or slightly falling labour market power in the UK, with large differences across labour markets. There is a significant concentration-wage penalty, though it is decreasing over time. The gig economy, hybrid working, employment law and pay setting policies all interact with labour market power in complex ways.
Jakob Schneebacher is an economist in the Competition and Market Authority (CMA)’s research-focused Microeconomics Unit. Before joining the CMA, Jakob worked at the Office for National Statistics and held a Fellowship at Nuffield College, Oxford.
Chair: Rebecca Riley, King’s College London
Discussant: Hannah Slaughter, Resolution Foundation