Unemployment in UK at 40-year low
WORK: Unemployment has reached a 40-year low, while there has been a record fall in the number of EU nationals working in the UK. Unemployment fell by 65,000 in the latest quarter to 1.36m.
The pace at which pay exceeds price growth remains negligible. Suren Thiru of the British Chambers of Commerce.
UNEMPLOYMENT HAS reached a 40-year low, while there has been a record fall in the number of EU nationals working in the UK, new figures show.
There were 2.28m EU nationals working in this country in the quarter to June, 86,000 fewer than a year earlier, the largest annual decrease since records began in 1997.
Unemployment fell by 65,000 in the latest quarter to 1.36m, the lowest figure since 1976, giving a jobless rate of four per cent.
In Yorkshire and the Humber, there were 114,000 people unemployed between April and June. This was down by 12,000, the equivalent of 4.2 per cent.
Unions welcomed the fall in the number of workers on zero-hours contracts nationwide, though there was concern among business groups at the small gap between pay and price growth.
Suren Thiru of the British Chambers of Commerce said yesterday: “The continued rise in employment and the drop in the unemployment rate is further confirmation that the UK’s jobs market remains in good shape, despite subdued economic conditions.
“With earnings growth continuing to slow, the pace at which pay is exceeding price growth remains negligible, and is therefore unlikely to provide much respite to the financially squeezed consumer.”
The number of people in work continued to increase – up by 42,000 to 32.39m, although the rate remained at 75 per cent, said the Office for National Statistics.
Job vacancies increased by 20,000 to a record high of 829,000, while average earnings increased by 2.4 per cent in the year to June, down from 2.5 per cent the previous month.
The number of workers on zero-hours contracts fell by 104,000 over the past year to 780,000, the first substantial fall since the ONS started tracking the figures in 2000.
Senior ONS statistician Matt Hughes said: “The number of people in work has continued to edge ahead, though the employment rate was unchanged on the quarter. The growth in employment is still being driven by UK nationals, with a noticeable drop over the past year in the number of workers from the so-called A8 eastern European countries in particular.”
Despite the fall in unemployment the number of people classed as economically inactive, including students, those on long-term sick leave, or who have taken early retirement or given up looking for work, increased by 77,000 to 8.7 million, giving a rate of 21.2 per cent.
The claimant count, which includes people on Jobseeker’s Allowance and the unemployment element of Universal Credit, increased by 6,200 last month to 906,100, almost 108,000 more than a year ago.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Esther McVey said: “With the unemployment rate falling further to just four per cent, and youth unemployment down over 45 per cent since 2010, school leavers this week can look forward to a growing jobs market, improving the prospects for their future careers.
“In fact the UK’s vibrant jobs market is benefiting people across the board. Record rates of ethnic minority people in work also show that more families across our society are benefiting from the security of a job, with wages also on the increase.
“We have some of the most creative, innovative and hard-working young people in the world and this summer I’ve been urging them to take on a summer job, gaining ‘soft skills’ – or as I call them, essential skills – for their future careers.”
Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen welcomed the nine per cent fall in the number of residents in the North-East region claiming unemployment benefits. He said: “These numbers are extremely heartening and demonstrate the commitment our local businesses have to investment, growth and job creation.”