Unemployment lowest since 1974


The UK unemployment rate is at its lowest level for almost 45 years.


In the three months to April, the unemployment rate fell to 3.8% from 3.9% in the previous three-month period. The rate has not been lower since the three-month period ending December 1974, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.


The lower rate came on the back of a fall of 34,000 in unemployed numbers to 1.3 million in the April period against 1.34 million for the January period.


On a gender basis, woman accounted for most of the overall fall. The number of unemployed women fell by 25,000 to 586,000 and their unemployment rate was down to 3.7% from 3.8%.


Meanwhile, the number of unemployed men fell by just 9,000 to 719,000, which was not enough to impact on their unemployment rate which remained at 4.0%.


There was an increase in the other main official unemployment measure — the claimant count. This count only includes claimants receiving Jobseeker’s Allowance and those on the means-tested Universal Credit. In May 2019, unemployment under this count totalled 1.1 million, a 23,200 increase on the revised total for April of 1.08 million. 


The increase in numbers pushed the joblessness rate up to 3.1% from 3.0%.

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