Hospitality bosses are urging the government to “abandon” plans for any new charges in this year’s Budget – warning that piling more costs onto struggling firms risks closures, rising prices and job losses.
Their call came as fresh figures showed the biggest increase in real-terms wages since the financial crash, with earnings in hotels, restaurants and bars rising faster than the island average.
Ana and Marcus Calvani, co-CEOs of the Jersey Hospitality Association, said the sector was already under pressure from minimum-wage increases and falling visitor numbers – and further charges could tip businesses over the edge.
How wages are changing
Figures published on Friday by Statistics Jersey show that average earnings were 4.5% higher in June than in the same month last year.
But with inflation at 2.6%, real-terms growth was 1.9%.
The report also showed that average earnings in the hotels, restaurants and bars sector rose by 5.1% over the year, driven by the minimum-wage increase, with June earnings per full-time employee in the sector averaging £690 per week.
Responding to the figures, the Calvanis said: “Businesses in our sector have watched with growing concern as costs spiralled up over the last three years, and with the increases in the minimum wage, it’s no surprise that many are pessimistic about the future.
“It is good news for those that are earning more, but the impact on wage rates above them is also significant. “
“Hospitality runs on very tight margins”
“Hospitality runs on very tight margins and with visitor numbers down this year here and in nearly all other destinations around the world, any base cost increases are not just painful to an already very small margin, they have a detrimental impact on product investment and direct inflationary cost to the end consumer,” they continued.
“As an industry, we are bracing ourselves for even more cost increases as we wait for the Government to publish next year’s Budget.
“Very little has been said about what they are planning to do, but we’re expecting a proposal to raise alcohol duty, a proposed new charge for food licensing, and a proposed introduction of charges for waste, to name a few.
“With those and the proposed further increase in the minimum wage next Spring, we’re very worried about how businesses will be able to keep going.”
“Listen to businesses”
Given these pressures, the JHA said it was calling for “politicians to listen to businesses and abandon any plans for new or higher charges” if it wants to see “diverse economic growth and avoid self-inflicted inflation, business closures and increased unemployment”.
Chamber of Commerce CEO Murray Norton added: “It’s no surprise that the increase in the minimum wage has had an inflationary effect on pay right across the economy.
“That doesn’t mean that everyone has seen their wages increase, but it does mean that businesses will be passing on costs to customers, so it won’t be just wage packets that see a rise.
“We would urge caution on further policies that impact the cost and sustainability of doing business in Jersey.”
IN NUMBERS…
Small growth in wages
- Average earnings rose by 4.5% in the year to June 2025, which equates to a 1.9% increase in real terms once inflation of 2.6% is taken into account.
- Growth was slower than in recent years, following a 6.4% rise in 2024 and an 8.8% increase in 2023, the strongest rate for more than two decades.
- Over the past decade, average earnings have fallen by 1.4% in real terms.
Public and private sectors
- In the private sector, earnings grew by 4.5% (1.9% in real terms), while in the public sector wages rose by 4.8% (2.2% in real terms).
- Since 2015, public-sector earnings have fallen by 0.9% in real terms and private-sector earnings have dropped by 3.1%.
Public and private sectors
- Agriculture and fishing recorded the largest increase at 13.4%
- Private education, health and other services rose by 8.0% over the year.
- Wholesale and retail earnings increased by 5.4%,
- Hotels, restaurants and bars rose by 5.1%
- Financial and legal services recorded below-average growth of 3.1%.
- Construction and quarrying was the only sector to see a fall, with earnings down 0.2% year-on-year.
And on average…
- The median weekly earnings for a full-time employee were £890 in June 2025, which is £40 higher than last year.
- The mean weekly earnings were £1,000, unchanged from the previous year, reflecting the impact of higher earners.
- Weekly earnings ranged from £690 in hospitality to £1,320 in financial services.
- In the longer view, real-term earnings have shown little overall change since 1990.