UK Employment Might Be Slowing Down

The number of people out of work in the UK fell by 125,000 to 2.34 million in the three months to December, according to the latest estimates.

The unemployment rate now stands at 7.2%, but the Office for National Statistics said the improvement in the labour market could be slowing.

Meanwhile, more women are in work than at any time since records began, at just over 14 million.

Average earnings have also increased, by 1.1% in the year to December.

Latest estimates show that 193,000 more people were in work between October and December, compared to the previous three months.

That means overall employment now stands at more than 30 million, a rate of 72.1%, which is an increase of 0.6% on a year ago.

Rate fall “slowing”
The number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance fell by 27,600 in January to 1.22 million, its 15th consecutive monthly drop.

ONS figures released last month put the unemployment rate at 7.1%, slightly less than this month’s estimate of 7.2%.

However, the ONS insists the latest statistics show a fall in the unemployment rate, because the most meaningful comparisons are made quarterly in order not to rely too much on a single month’s figure.

On that basis, the rate of unemployment in the three months to December fell by 0.4% on the previous quarter, when it stood at 7.6%.

via BBC

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