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British workers have suffered the biggest plunge in pay among EU member states since David Cameron came to power.

Shock new figures reveal that UK wages have dropped by an average four per cent in four years. Only workers in crisis-hit Greece, Cyprus and Portugal have endured bigger falls.

The findings shatter Chancellor George Osborne’s claim that the recovering British economy is benefiting millions of ordinary people.

The figures from independent experts at the House of Commons for 26 of the 28 EU nations show wages in Germany rose by 4.3 per cent and in France by 1.9 per cent.

(Image: Getty)

Workers in poorer nations where wages are generally much lower enjoyed the biggest surge in pay, with those in Bulgaria seeing a 15.1 per cent rise, followed by 10.9 per cent in Estonia. In debt-laden Greece, however, wages have plummeted a massive 17.8 per cent.

The revelations come amid mounting calls from union leaders this weekend for David Cameron and his Chancellor to tackle the cost-of-living crisis facing millions of families.

Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Chris Leslie warned: “We already know working people are over £1,600 a year worse off under the Tories. Now these figures show workers in Britain have been hit harder than in almost every other EU country.

“George Osborne is so out of touch he complacently claims the economy is fixed.

“But these figures show hard-working people are still not feeling the benefit.”

Comment: By Unite General Secretary Len McCluskey

(Image: Chris Neill)

Here’s something that will shock you: I agree with a Tory minister. When Justine Greening said her party was failing working-class kids, she was dead right. What she didn’t admit is that Cameron and Osborne are incapable of doing anything about it.

Nearly one million of our 18- to 24-year-olds are on the dole. Hundreds of thousands of them have never had a job. They’re unlikely to get one in Tory Britain either.

Poverty pay, insecurity, crazy living costs are a plague on our people. Diseases of poverty, such as rickets and malnutrition, are back.

Second-rate, insecure jobs are on the rise, condemning decent working people to a prison of poverty – working harder but getting poorer.

Cameron cannot con us into accepting 4.5 million in self-employment as a good thing, not when it leaves one in six workers without rights. Osborne’s efforts to claim recovery are rubbished by the evidence which proves this is the slowest recovery since the great depression. Out in the real world, recovery is as elusive as unicorns.

Yet austerity addicts in Westminster threaten more of the same pain if they get back into power in 2015. This is Britain in the 21st Century. The sixth-richest country on the planet has been reduced to a nation of food banks for the poor but expanded privilege for the rich.

In 241 days we can get rid of this rabble. We can say we’re taking our country back. No more gift-wrapping our NHS for Wall St – we pay for it, work in it, depend on it – it is ours, get your filthy hands off it. We can demand better for our kids. We can say to business, cough up – you’ve exploited our people’s hard graft long enough, now pay a living wage. And to those who swindle our country out of taxes they owe, no more free rides – with jail for accountancy crooks who make a mint peddling scams.

This week, unions representing 6.5 million working people will lead calls for a better Britain. We terrify Cameron because we carry with us the hopes of ordinary people.

Ed Miliband, this is why you must stay true to yourself. Lead a party that can bring real change, that convinces people it is on their side. Then the keys to No10 will rightly be yours.