Coronavirus (COVID-19) roundup: 3 November 2020

ONS have published the latest figures on deaths involving COVID-19 in England and Wales, and data on employee earnings in April 2020. The main points include:

• Deaths involving COVID-19 increased for the seventh consecutive week, with 978 deaths registered in the week ending 23 October 2020

• By region, the highest number of COVID-19 deaths was reported in the North West (325 deaths), followed by Yorkshire and The Humber (159) and the North East (114)

• Median weekly pay for full-time employees was £586 in April 2020, up by 0.1% on a year earlier; pay fell in the private sector (negative 0.6%) but not in the public sector (positive 2.4%)

• Employees aged 16 to 17 and 18 to 21 years were more impacted than other employees by the coronavirus pandemic in terms of hours paid for, which fell by 5.4% and 3.7% respectively compared with 2019

• Younger workers and those working in accommodation and food services were more likely to be furloughed and were also less likely to have their pay topped up by their employer when compared with other furloughed employees

Read the ONS roundup