Industries with the Highest Labor Costs in United Kingdom in 2026

• 1. Charities in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £32.2B

  Charities’ revenue is expected to rise at a compound annual rate of 5% over the five years through 2025-26 to £87.3 billion. Funding for charities isn't distributed evenly. The UK Shared Prosperity Fund has provided some financial support for the industry, with £2.6 billion allocated from April 2022 to March 2025 and an additional £900 million offered for 2025-26. However, funding has favoured bigger charities, with many small or micro organisations struggling to win bids in a highly competit...

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• 2. Business Process Outsourcing Services in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £29.8B

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• 3. Construction Contractors in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £27.9B

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• 4. General Secondary Education in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £27.9B

  Revenue in the UK General Secondary Education industry is tied to government funding, and continued support over the past five years has ultimately driven revenue growth. The necessity of secondary education, with it being compulsory to ensure the UK has an educated and skilled population, protects the industry from funding cuts. Additionally, the level of funding is sensitive to pupil numbers, and rising secondary school pupil numbers have encouraged funding hikes. However, while revenue has...

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• 5. Primary Education in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £26.4B

  Schools are heavily reliant on funding, so government spending decisions shape the performance of primary schools. Tuition fees and donations that turn the lights on in independent schools are key to primary education revenue. The necessity of primary education protects it from large funding cuts since the UK economy relies on an educated and skilled population. Performance is sensitive to the number of children of primary school age, so a decade of slumping birth rates is catching up to the ...

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• 6. Temporary-Employment Placement Agencies in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £24.9B

  The Temporary-Employment Placement Agencies industry revenue is forecast to inch upwards at a compound annual rate of 2% to £59.4 billion over the five years through 2025-26. The COVID-19 outbreak at the beginning of the previous five-year period meant key employers of temporary workers in sports and music event spaces completely shut their doors, and businesses froze hiring, reducing clients for agencies. Sign-ups for temporary employment declined, hitting revenue in 2020-21. Companies press...

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• 7. Management Consultants in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £24.5B

  In recent years, management consultants have been reaping the rewards of swelling demand for IT consulting services. While expanding business activity and spending has fuelled management consultants’ revenue during upbeat economic conditions, the provision of countercyclical services has supported revenue during periods of economic instability. They’ve also benefitted from regulatory changes, as businesses have required help to fine-tune their strategies and operations following Brexit and re...

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• 8. Supermarkets in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £23.4B

  ]The Supermarkets industry has undergone something of a shift over the past decade – discounters Aldi and Lidl have penetrated the customer base of the traditional “Big Four” supermarkets (Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons), with their low prices and improving quality of products resonating with price-conscious shoppers. Over the five years through 2025-26, supermarkets' revenue is expected to climb at a compound annual rate of 0.4% to £211.8 billion, with an anticipated hike of 0.5% in ...

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• 9. Hospitals in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £22.2B

  Over the five years to 2025-26, hospitals' revenue is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 0.4% to £127.4 billion. Hospital services are currently being stretched to the limit as they struggle to navigate financial constraints and workforce shortages, while appointment waiting times remain high. Hospitals still face long elective backlogs, reaching 7.36 million in March 2025, according to NHS England. However, the growth in private hospitals is fuelling industry revenue as patients a...

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• 10. Computer Consultants in the UK

  Labor Costs for 2026: £20.6B

  The Computer Consultants industry’s revenue has experienced continued positive growth as technological developments create high demand for their expertise and services. This growth was extreme as workplace operations shifted to become even more digital during the pandemic. The industry has faced increasing obstacles due to a highly competitive market, talent shortages and low business confidence caused by an uncertain economic environment, cited frequently by consultants as feeding into poor ...

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