Articles | Unemployment figures on the rise

Unemployment figures on the rise

Published: Wednesday, 11 June 2008, 11:31AM

The number of people claiming unemployment benefits rose for a fourth straight month in May as the economy continues to struggle.

Jobless figures for the three months to April suffered their biggest rise since July 2006 with the number out of work up 38,000 at 1.64 million.

In May, the claimant count rose by 9,000 last month to 819,300 and follows an upwardly revised rise to 810,300 from 806,300 in April, Office for National Statistics figures showed.

Meanwhile, the ONS said annual average earnings growth in the three months to April slowed to 3.8 per cent from 4.0 per cent.

The ONS data shows the worst-hit employment sectors this year have been the manufacturing and financial services areas, which shed 11,000 and 20,000 jobs respectively during the first three months.

Manufacturing jobs continued to reach a record low, down 33,000 in the latest quarter to 2.89 million, the worst since comparable records began in 1978.

Despite the increase in unemployment, the number of people in work increased by 76,000 in the three months to March to 29.55 million, a record high and reflecting an increase in the working age population.

There were 22.04 million people in full-time jobs, up 80,000 from the three months to January, and 7.51 million part-timers, a dip of 4,000.

The number of people in public sector employment dropped by 20,000 between March and December, to 5.76 million, while jobs in private firms rose by 96,000 during the period.

In the three months to April, 110,000 people reported they had been made redundant, down 2,000 from the three months to January.

There were 678,600 job vacancies in the UK in the three months to May, up 100 from the previous quarter.

The number of people classed as economically inactive, including those looking after a sick relative, people who have taken early retirement or who have given up looking for work, fell by 23,000 during the quarter to April to 7.86 million, just under 21 per cent of the working age population.