Copy article

Labour market cools in second quarter with unemployment at 4.9%

ended 18. August 2026

The UK's labour market cooled somewhat in the second quarter, which was marked by ​slowing earnings growth in the private sector and the ‌smallest number of vacancies since 2014 (aside from Covid), Office for National Statistics official data showed on Tuesday

Private sector regular earnings rose by 2.8% in the annual terms ​during the three months to June, marking the weakest ⁠growth since the three months to October 2020.

The unemployment rate held at 4.9% while the number of ​open job vacancies fell to 707,000 in the three months ​to July, down from 711,000 in the three months to July. It was the smallest total since the three months to April 2021. Excluding the pandemic, vacancies are at their lowest since late 2014.

Overall annual earnings growth, excluding bonuses, was 3.5% in the second quarter, ​the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday.

  • What is your reaction to the figures?
  • What does it say about the jobs market?
  • What is your advice to people trying to find a job?

Responses asap this morning.

5 responses from the Newspage community

Copy all

Copy

Editor
Stephen Perkins
Managing Director at Yellow Brick Mortgages
The jobs market is becoming more competitive. With vacancies at their lowest outside the pandemic since 2014, employers can afford to be more selective. For jobseekers, that means quality matters more than quantity. Tailor applications, demonstrate the value you can bring and show employers you can use new technology rather than be replaced by it.
Copy

Editor
Kelly Smallcombe
Fractional Chief People Officer at Meliorem HR Consultancy
Nobody is surprised vacancies are falling, it’s the data reflecting what everyone has said: more employment rights and more costs on people means companies are less willing to take a risk on hiring. That’s tough for jobseekers, fewer roles and employers chasing ‘purple unicorns’ piling more skills onto one job than the role used to require.

If you are a job seeker don't wait for the "right" role to appear and assume more will follow, unless you are happy to stay. Keep several processes moving rather than pinning hopes on one. Employers that are hiring aren't short of interest, they're short of confidence that any one hire is safe, so anything that reduces their perceived risk moves you to the front of the queue.
Copy

Editor
Sam Alsop-Hall
Chief Strategy Officer & Co-Founder at Clive Henry Group
When a job churns now, it doesn't get readvertised. Increasingly it gets replaced by an AI agent, and that is why vacancies are at their lowest level in a decade. This is the first jobs report that really shows the Fourth Industrial Revolution biting. I run businesses across recruitment and healthcare workforce, and I see it on the ground every day: employers are no longer asking who should fill a role, they're asking whether the role needs a human at all.

The headline figures understate what's happening underneath. Unemployment holding at 4.9% sounds benign, but 707,000 vacancies, the fewest since 2014 outside the pandemic, tells you the market is being rewired rather than simply cooling. Administrative work, entry level analysis, customer service, routine finance and back office functions are being quietly absorbed into software, vacancy by vacancy.
Copy

Editor
Kate Underwood
Founder & Chief People Strategist at Kate Underwood HR and Training
These figures show the jobs market has definitely cooled. There are fewer vacancies, pay growth is slowing and people looking for work are facing more competition. For employers, recruitment might feel a little easier, but that doesn’t mean you can sit back and expect great candidates to come knocking. Good people still have choices, and a rubbish recruitment process will still put them off. If you’re job hunting, don’t just fire off the same CV to everything with a pulse. Be picky, tailor your application, talk about what you’ve actually achieved and use your network. Speak to people, not just job boards.
There are still jobs out there, but standing out matters more now. Fewer vacancies doesn’t mean fewer opportunities for the right person, it just means you may have to work a bit harder to find yours.
Copy

Debbie Denyer
Executive Coach & Facilitator at Coach the Difference Ltd
The worst thing jobseekers can do in this market is become invisible.

With vacancies down to around 707,000 and private sector pay growth slowing to 2.8%, competition is intensifying.

When you’re one of hundreds of applicants, sending another CV into an online application system may not be enough. Jobseekers need to get out from behind the screen.

Identify the organisations you want to work for. Build relationships. Understand their challenges. Find people who can introduce you to others.

Don’t ask for a job. Ask, “Who else should I be talking to?”

When employers are more cautious about hiring, being known, trusted and recommended can make the difference between being one of hundreds of applicants and being the person who gets the conversation.