New figures released today by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show that employment is at a record high, and wages are rising at their fastest pace in a decade, meaning more people than ever before have the security of a regular pay packet. The full report can be viewed by clicking here
We are helping people into work by reforming welfare so work always pays, while backing businesses to create more, better paying jobs across the whole country through our modern Industrial Strategy.
Since 2010, we have helped over 3.4 million more people into work and reduced the number of people who are unemployed by over 1.1 million – meaning more people have the security of a job and are able to provide for their families.
Behind every employment number is a person and a family whose self-esteem, mental wellbeing, economic circumstances and life chances are all vastly improved by being in the workplace.
The Brexit deal we have reached is the best deal for business, jobs and our economy. Backing this deal means providing certainty, protecting jobs, and securing a brighter future for Britain.
Key statistics:
- Employment: A record high of 32.48 million (up 396,000 over the last year and up by 3.43 million since 2010).
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Employment rate: 75.7 per cent (up 0.6 points over the past year and up 5.5 points since 2010).
- Unemployment: 1.38 million (down 49,000 over the past year and down by 1.13 million since 2010).
- Unemployment rate: 4.1 per cent (down 0.2 points over the past year and down 3.9 points since 2010) – almost halving since 2010 (8.0 per cent).
- Wages: Average weekly earnings for employees in real terms increased by 0.9 per cent compared with a year earlier.
- Youth unemployment: There are over 440,000 fewer young people out of work since 2010 – almost halving since 2010.
- Disabled people: Almost 1 million disabled people (973,000) have entered work since 2013, as we are breaking down the barriers to employment facing disabled people.
Other useful statistics:
- Latest data shows that wages increased by 3.3 per cent – while prices rose by 2.4 per cent in October – meaning wages continue to rise faster than prices. This is good news, but there is more to do.
- The employment rate among ethnic minority groups is now at a record high of 66.9 per cent – we are closer to our target to increase the level of BME employment by 20 per cent by 2020.
- 80 per cent of jobs created since 2010 are full-time jobs, with 2.4 per cent of our workforce on zero-hour contracts.
- There are nearly 1.6 million more women in work since 2010.
At the Budget the OBR confirmed Britain’s employment success is set to continue:
- Employment is expected to be higher than forecast over the next five years, that’s 800,000 more jobs to be created by 2023.
- This means that since 2010, there will be 4.2 million new jobs created, making John McDonnell’s prediction of 1.2 million jobs lost out by 5.4 million.
