A finance minister has warned workers not to expect their wages to rise along with rising inflation.
Simon Clarke said that big pay rises to cover the rising cost of living could result in a 1970s-style “inflationary spiral”.
This happens when wage increases help push up the cost of living.
Mr Clarke said employers should be “very careful” when setting wage increases to prevent this.
He warned that inflation could become a “self-fulfilling prophecy”.
Inflation measures a general increase in prices over time. For example, if a loaf of bread costs £1 one year and £1.09 the next, that is an annual inflation rate of 9%.
On Thursday, the Bank of England said inflation could reach more than 11%.
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In a poll of more than 4,000 people commissioned by the BBC, 82% said they thought their wages should rise to keep up with rising prices for goods and services.
But Mr Clarke, the chief secretary of the Treasury, told the BBC that “unrealistic expectations in terms of pay” could “aggravate this never-ending problem of inflation”.
Public sector wage verification bodies are due to report the size of increases for workers – including those in health care, schools and prisons – in the coming weeks.
Unions are urging wage increases to reflect the rising cost of living.
Mr Clarke is the Treasury Secretary responsible for the Pay Review Board process.
His comments are the clearest indication that public sector workers in general will not receive severance pay anywhere near current inflation rates.
The independent panels have begun reporting to relevant government agencies on fair pay and recruitment difficulties.
The Treasury Department says these departments must find the money from existing budgets for any pay rises beyond those already planned.
Mr Clarke said there was no automatic link between inflation and wage setting and that inflation could “outrun us”.
Earlier this week, the ONS said regular wages are falling at their fastest pace in more than a decade, factoring in rising prices.
Between February and April, non-bonus wages fell 2.2% yoy, adjusted for inflation, according to the ONS.
However, wages including bonuses grow faster than price increases and rise by 0.4% taking inflation into account.
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