“More people are in full-time work in the run up to Christmas, as the festive period delivers a new round of jobs approaching the end of the year. Advertised customer service roles are on the rise, providing crucial work opportunities for many and courier vacancies are the most popular. This is encouraging news, but may only prove to be a short-term improvement. The jobs market may appear well on its way to reaching its former strength, aided by rising wages for those in work. For jobseekers though, despite a dip in the unemployment rate, the reality is not quite as rosy as it initially seems.
“Falling unemployment has failed to translate into a real improvement for job hunters. Adzuna data reveals that there is a current ratio of two vacancies for every jobseeker, but a chronic skills shortage is making it more difficult than ever to fill positions. This has resulted in an uneasy dependency on both internal and overseas migration in order to prop up the jobs market into the next year. The New Year will present a real challenge for both employers and jobseekers – as both struggle to find the right person, or the right job. For the jobs market to be firmly back on its feet, proactive ways to tackle the skills deficit need to be found.”
ONS Labour Market Statistics, December 2015
- There were 31.30 million people in work between August and October 2015, 207,000 more than for May to July 2015 and 505,000 more on a yearly basis
- During the same period, there were 22.88 million people working full-time, 338,000 more than for a year earlier and 8.42 million people were working part-time – 167,000 more than for a year earlier
- The employment rate (the proportion of people aged from 16 to 64 who were in work) was 73.9% – the highest since comparable records began in 1971
- The unemployment rate was 5.2%, lower than a year earlier (6.0%). It has not been lower since the 3 months to January 2006.
- There were 1.71 million unemployed people, 110,000 fewer than for May to July 2015 and 244,000 fewer than for a year earlier
- Comparing August to October 2015 with the same period the previous year, pay for employees in Great Britain increased by 2.4% including bonuses and by 2.0% excluding bonuses
