The increase in total pay – which includes bonuses – measured by the ONS showed a marked slowdown from the previous month.
The ONS said this was due to one-off bonuses paid to NHS and civil service workers in June and July 2023 not being replicated this year.
Growth in regular pay, excluding bonuses, also slowed to 5.1%, although it is still rising faster than inflation.
Analysts said the continued slowdown in earnings should encourage the Bank of England to cut interest rates again later this year.
Last month, the Bank cut rates to 5% from 5.25%, marking the first cut since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
It meets again to discuss interest rates next week, although analysts are not expecting further rate cuts until later in the year.
“With wage growth easing off again, it’ll cement expectations that the Bank of England will deliver two interest rate cuts by the end of the year,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
The unemployment rate in the May to July period slipped to 4.1%, the lowest since the three months to January 2024.
The number of job vacancies between June and August fell to the lowest figure for more than three years, although the total is still above pre-pandemic levels.
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