Jobless numbers continue to rise

Under the Labour Force survey count, UK unemployment rose by 44,000 to 2.5 million in the three months ending December, says the Office for National Statistics.

Youth unemployment hit a new record high after a rise of 66,000 to 965,000.

The overall unemployment rate is now 7.9%, while youth unemployment is 20.5% (see page 29).

The number of jobless men was up by 32,000 to 1.46 million and their unemployment rate rose to 8.6%. Female unemployment was 12,000 higher — at 1.03 million — and their rate was up to 7.1%.

Long-term unemployment also worsened, with 17,000 more people out of work for more than a year, taking the total to 833,000.

Meanwhile, the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance — the so-called claimant count — increased by 2,400 to 1.46 million in January. The jobless rate of claimants remains at 4.5%.

Dr John Philpott, chief economic adviser at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) professional body, said: “Forward-looking survey indicators suggest that redundancies are now on the rise, especially in the public sector, while recruitment is easing across most sectors.”

He added that it all points to “a further increase in unemployment throughout the remainder of 2011 at the very least”.