Two and a quarter million workless is terrible by any standards. But what struck me most is the fact that for the first time we have a figure for the number of people classed as economically inactive, including those who have given up looking for work, increased by 92,000 in the latest quarter to 7.89 million, a fifth of the working age population.
We’ve all known for a long time that the official jobless figures were far from reality. Now we know more accurately. Five and half million of our population are so shattered that they’ve given up and are not in the official jobless totasl.
Christina Speight
SKY NEWS 17.6.09•
Number Of Unemployed Hits 12-Year High
BREAKING NEWS at 10:43am
Unemployment increased by 232,000 to a 12-year high of 2.26 million in the three months to April.
But the rate that people lost their jobs was not as bad as had been expected.
Sky News reported today that research by the European Restructuring Monitor [An EU ‘quango’ -cs] showed that the number of people losing their jobs is slowing dramatically.
Although the number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance last month increased by 39,300 to 1.54 million, that was the smallest increase in 10 months.
April saw a rise of 49,600, March chalked up an increase of 65,500 and 136,600 were added to the tally in February.
"The claimant count unemployment data boost hopes that the rise in the number of jobless has tailed off appreciably after surging at the beginning of the year," said Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight.
Several reports have warned that despite signs the economy is improving, unemployment is likely to continue rising well into next year.
"It is likely that the number of jobless still has some considerable way to rise," Mr Archer warned.
"While the economy appears to have at least temporarily stabilised, unemployment is a lagging indicator and the extended deep economic contraction seen in the second half of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 will continue to feed through to hit the jobs market pretty hard for some months to come."
However, IHS said unemployment was likely to peak at 3m - not 3.3m as previously predicted.
"Even if the economy does manage to eke out some growth over the coming months, it is unlikely to be strong enough for some considerable time to come to lead to a net creation of jobs," Mr Archer said.
"Consequently, the economy seems highly likely to shed jobs well into 2010. Nevertheless, we now lean towards the view that unemployment is likely to peak around 3 million, rather than reach 3.3 million as we previously feared."
Youth unemployment reached its worst level since 1994 after a 74,000 increase in the number of 18 to 24-year-olds out of work to 695,000
TELEGRAPH
17.6.09
Unemployment hits 12-year high of over 2.2million
Unemployment has soared to over 2.2million, the highest level since Labour came to power, after a record number of people lost their jobs in recent months, gloomy new figures showed.
The jobless total increased by 232,000 in the three months to April to reach 2.26 million, the worst figure since the end of 1996.
The number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance increased by 39,300 in May to 1.54 million, the highest total since the summer of 1997.
The so-called claimant count has now increased for 15 months in a row.
Other figures from the Office for National Statistics showed that youth unemployment has reached its worst level since 1994 after a 74,000 increase in the number of 18 to 24-year-olds out of work to 695,000.
Long term unemployment, counting those out of work for more than a year, increased by 54,000 in the latest quarter to a 10-year high of 515,000.
Meanwhile, the number of people in work fell by 271,000 over the three months to 29.11 million, the biggest quarterly slump since comparable records began in 1971.
Public sector employment increased by 15,000 to more than six million - the highest since comparable records began in 1999 - although most of the increase was because of banking working switching from the private sector under the Government's rescue.
More than 300,000 people were made redundant in the three months to April, an increase of 36,000 on the previous quarter and the highest total since records began in 1995.
The number of workforce jobs was 31 million in March, down by 108,000 on the quarter, while vacancies fell by 38,000 in the quarter to April to 444,000, another record low.
The number of people classed as economically inactive, including those who have given up looking for work, increased by 92,000 in the latest quarter to 7.89 million, a fifth of the working age population.
Average earnings increased by 0.8% in the year to April, an increase of 1.1% on the last month's record low. Excluding bonuses, wages rose by 2.7%, down by 0.3%.
Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Today's figures show the importance of providing extra help for people and families coping with unemployment.
"Families across Britain are continuing to feel the consequences of the global recession. Unemployment has increased in Britain and across the world, although it is lower here than in the US and the Euro-zone.
"It is vital we do everything we can, both to help people into work right now and to prevent long-term unemployment scarring families and communities for the future.
"That is why we are investing £5 billion extra into helping jobseekers - creating jobs for young people and those in the hardest-hit communities, delivering training and skills, and providing 16,000 extra frontline staff in Jobcentres across the country.
"The figures show the number of new claimants has fallen for the last two months, but many people are still facing significant difficulties and we are determined to provide more help.
"We will not turn our backs on people who need help. Nor will we stand by while people slip into the kind of long-term unemployment or worklessness that scarred families in past recessions." [What? 7.89 million ARE being ‘scarred’ right now! (see above)-cs]
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: "Economists may argue about whether we are now out of recession and into recovery, but in the real world of Britain's workplaces people are still losing their jobs and finding it harder and harder to get new ones.
"Unemployment is now at its highest level since Autumn 1996 and it will take years, not months, to recover. If we are to avoid the 10 per cent unemployment rates of the 1980s and 1990s it is imperative the Government continues to invest in tackling unemployment.
"Youth unemployment is now at its highest rate for 15 years, and it will get far worse when millions of fresh school leavers and graduates start looking for work in the coming weeks.
"Unemployment leaves a permanent scar on young people's lives and Government must do all it can to stop joblessness blighting another generation's lives.
"The Government's jobs guarantee should soon start to help young people who lost their jobs at the start of the recession - it's exactly the right priority. But people leaving school or college this summer will need help with training and advice long before the 12 months that they will have to wait for the jobs guarantee."
Margaret Eaton, chairman of the Local Government Association, said: "Every single person being made redundant or having difficulty making ends meet should contact their council to make sure that they are getting all the advice, support and benefits they're eligible for.
"From retraining and finding a new job to filling in housing benefits forms, town halls are there to help people through difficult times.
"Different parts of the country are facing very different levels and types of unemployment. Former industrial areas have been hit by blue collar unemployment, whilst white collar job losses are rising at a much quicker rate in London and the South East."
BBC News 17/6/09 @ 10:08
Theresa May: Government announcements alone won't help unemployed
• Theresa May MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
•
Ms May accused the government of simply making announcements on tackling unemployment, rather than providing real help to those losing their jobs.
"The government is very good at making announcements about help then it takes some time for them to come in," she said, adding that the government "should actually be giving real help now rather than making announcements that then don't come into force for some months."
She said her party would take further action to help people back into work, including relaxing the 6 month gap between losing a job and receiving training, and providing 25,000 places for students to continue in post graduate study.
She also rejected suggestions that despite the figures, the UK economy was in comparatvely better shape than other major economies.
"We've seen some very sharp increases and we were predicted by the OECD to have the sharpest recession unemployment of any major country," she said.
Posts
