Latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics make encouraging reading as more people in the UK are in employment and fewer are unemployed compared with the previous quarter and the previous year.
Within the North West region, overall unemployment fell by 18,000 between March to May, including fewer young adults (16-24) and longer term claimants by a total of 1,600.
3,200 less people were claiming Job Seekers Allowance in June compared to the May statistics.
Commenting on the data Baron Frankal, director of economic strategy at New Economy, said:
“This month’s JSA figures reveal another solid decrease in claimants, continuing the positive trend of recent months. However, we are still, without a doubt, in the midst of a very tricky period for unemployment and face significant short-term challenges, especially as we approach the school leaver and graduation period.
“That said, Greater Manchester continues to take significant steps to secure future jobs for the region, so whilst we still expect a bumpy ride, the long-term plan is taking root, and things like our recent Regional Growth Fund (RGF) bid wins are evidence of that.
“Greater Manchester has won two bids – first of all, securing multi-million pounds worth of investment for development of the local talent pool that will turning scientific research into commercial success; and secondly, through the RGF bid by home shopping giant N Brown, where Greater Manchester’s position on the repatriation of textile manufacture to the UK will support hundreds of textile firms seeking investment for growth.
“These successes mean that Greater Manchester is preparing itself for future job growth, whilst smaller achievements such as today’s decrease in JSA figures help to fuel a fairly optimistic outlook.”
National Figures:
Nationally, employment is up 16,000 on the quarter and 336,000 on the year.
Overall, there were 29.71 million people in work, a small increase of 16,000 when comparing March-May 2013 with the previous three months. Looking over a longer time period, employment was up 336,000 on the year. The employment rate, which measures the percentage of people aged from 16 to 64 in work, was 71.4%.
Unemployment down 57,000 on the quarter and 72,000 on the year
Turning to unemployment, there were 2.51 million people out of work and looking for work, a fall of 57,000 when comparing March-May 2013 with the previous three months. The unemployment rate, which measures the percentage of the labour force aged 16 and over who were unemployed, was 7.8%.
Compared with a year earlier there were 72,000 fewer unemployed people. The number of people who had been unemployed for up to one year fell by 104,000 to reach 1.59 million, but the number of people who had been unemployed for over one year increased by 32,000 to reach 915,000 for March-May 2013, the highest figure since 1996. Looking in more detail at the 915,000 people who were unemployed for over a year, just over half (474,000) had been out of work and looking for work for over two years, the highest figure since 1997.
The number of vacancies within the UK continued to rise to reach 529,000 for April-June 2013, the highest since 2008.
A further fall in the number of claimants
Comparing June 2013 with a month earlier the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) fell by 21,200 to reach 1.48 million and, over the year, was down 117,700. The number of JSA claimants is the lowest since March 2011. The Claimant Count measures the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) and differs from unemployment as many unemployed people are not eligible for or do not claim Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Source: Office for National Statistics