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Job vacancies fall and unemployment rises

ended 18. April 2023

The UK unemployment rate rose to 3.8% in the three months to February, up from 3.7% in the previous three months, according to the latest official jobs data published this morning. Meanwhile, UK job vacancies have fallen again as companies hold back on hiring new staff. The data also showed that pay continues to lag behind rising prices. Annual growth in regular pay was 6.6% between December and February but, when taking into account the rate of price increases, fell by 2.3%. Any thoughts on this, send them across ASAP as this story is BREAKING.

 

2 responses from the Newspage community

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Samuel Mather-Holgate
Independent Financial Adviser at Mather and Murray Financial
This data shows a slight a weakening of sentiment, but from a tight base. The UK economy still has many vacancies but these tend to be in low wage, low skill areas like hospitality and social care. This is all an impact of Brexit, where many EU nationals have returned home and the seasonal immigration of these workers has dried up. A rise in unemployment is slightly more worrying as this could spiral in the current nervous economic climate.
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Bradley Lay
Founder at Peak Capital Group
Job vacancies are falling and unemployment rates are on the rise. This contradicts the message from the UK government of a growing economy. That's certainly not how the unemployed are feeling right now. Behind the numbers lies a bleak reality of economic uncertainty and a looming recession. As companies struggle to stay afloat in a post-Brexit world, workers are left to fend for themselves in a jobs market that offers little hope for their future. The latest official jobs data is a stark reminder of the harsh realities facing the UK economy, and a warning that things may get worse before they get better.