Unemployment rate unchanged


Unemployment was down by 16,000 at the end of last year, latest official figures show. Unemployment in the UK in the three-month period October to December 2019 fell to 1,290,000 from 1,306,000 in the previous three-month period.


However, the fall in numbers was not enough to cut the unemployment rate which remained at 3.8%.


The fall was all down to a cut in the number of jobless men. The number of unemployed men fell by 24,000 to 707,000, and their rate was cut to 3.8% from 4.1%. However, the number of unemployed women increased by 8,000 to 582,000, but their unemployment rate remained at 3.6%.


The other main official unemployment measure — the claimant count — only includes claimants receiving Jobseeker’s Allowance and those on the means-tested Universal Credit.


In January, unemployment under this count was 1,234,500 — a 5,500 increase on the revised total for December 2019 of 1,229,000.


The increase in numbers was not enough to affect the joblessness rate which remained at 3.4%.


Male claimants increased by 2,300 to 719,400, but their joblessness rate was unchanged at 3.8%.


Meanwhile, the number of female claimants increased by 3,200 to 515,100, leaving their joblessness rate steady at 3.0%.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotinwork/unemployment