Adzuna comments on ONS labour market stats: "The figures are distorted by a highly uneven jobs market"

“The unemployment jump reflects a country hurting from rising redundancies and lower-than-normal hiring. Younger workers are in particular pain, with far fewer entry-level opportunities available than normal at this time of year and a record decrease in the number of 18-24year olds in work. The figures are also distorted by a highly uneven jobs market. A handful of sectors, including Manufacturing, Logistics & Warehouse, and to a lesser extent Healthcare & Nursing, are beating the odds and hiring strongly.  Our data shows Logistics & Warehouse jobs are up 77% since the start of the year! That’s good news for workers in these areas, where new job openings are still being created. But if you remove these exceptional sectors from the overall picture, the UK jobs market looks even bleaker. The next few months are a critical moment, as more curfews, local lockdowns and restrictions dampen hiring and restrain the recovery in struggling sectors like Hospitality & Catering. It’s important that the wider jobs market rallies and employers who can do their bit to create the openings desperately needed by young people and those stuck in standstill sectors.”