Labour market indicators

While vacancies levels and the rate of earnings growth continued to fall, other labour market trends were comparatively steady in the final months of 2023.

Based on alternative UK estimates for September to November (rather than the usual Labour Force Survey data):

• the employment rate (age 16 to 64) increased by 0.1 percentage points to 75.8%;

• the unemployment rate (16 years and over) was largely unchanged at 4.2%;

• the economic inactivity rate (age 16 to 64) decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 20.8%.

The estimated number of payrolled employees (December 2023) decreased by 24,000 (from the revised November figure) to 30.2 million.

Vacancies fell by 49,000 (October to December 2023) to 934,000, particularly affecting wholesale and retail etc., and transport and storage.

In the year to November, whole-economy average weekly earnings (total pay) grew by 5.0%, down from 6.0% (after six months growing by more than 7.0%).

Excluding bonus payments, there was a smaller drop in regular pay growth, to 5.9% from 6.1%.

The strongest growth was wholesale/retail etc., at 7.3% - the weakest in construction at 4.2%.