Number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance falls across the UK
Labour market statistics for July 2013 show that the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance has fallen over the last month.
The number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance has fallen in every UK region over the last month, according to figures released today by the Office of National Statistics. The total number of people claiming the benefit is now lower than in May 2010.
This was part of an overall fall of 330,000 in the number of people claiming the main out of work benefits over the last three years.
According to the ONS, this was accompanied by a significant fall in unemployment of 57,000 on the quarter – a figure which included 20,000 fewer unemployed young people.
The statistics also show:
- the number of people in work rose by 16,000 over the last quarter
- the number of people in permanent jobs increased by 49,000 over the last quarter, more than offsetting falls in temporary and part time work
Minister for Employment Mark Hoban said:
Our welfare reform agenda is about making a fair and affordable system that incentivises work: giving people the support they need to get off benefits and into a job. Today’s figures are encouraging, with the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance down and the number of people in work increasing.
The fall in the number of people claiming out of work benefits, together with the news that there are currently over half a million vacancies available in the UK economy, show that there are opportunities out there for those who are prepared to work hard, and who aspire to get on in life.
Today’s statistics also show a continued growth in the number of vacancies, with more than half a million currently available. The number of vacancies has increased by 12% over the past year to 529,000 and there are now more jobs available than at any time since the end of 2008.
Background to labour market statistics July 2013
This month’s Labour Force Survey covers March to May 2013. The claimant count is for June 2013 and the vacancy count for April to June 2013.
The number of people in work rose this quarter
The details are:
- 29.71 million people were in work in March to May 2013
- the employment level rose 16 thousand on the previous quarter and 336 thousand on the year
- the employment rate is 71.4%, down 0.1 points on the quarter but up 0.6 points on the year
ILO unemployment fell this quarter
The details are:
- 2.51 million people were ILO unemployed in the March to May 2013 quarter, down 57 thousand on the previous quarter and 72 thousand on the year
- the ILO unemployment rate is 7.8%, down 0.2 points on the quarter and down 0.3 points on the year
The level of economic inactivity is up on the quarter but down on the year
The details are:
- the economic inactivity level is 9.04 million in the March to May 2013 quarter, up 87 thousand on the previous quarter but down 144 thousand on the year
- the economic inactivity rate is 22.5%, up 0.2 points on the quarter but down 0.4 points on the year
- excluding students, inactivity as a share of the 16-64 population is 16.8%, up 0.1 points on the quarter but down 0.6 points on the year
The number of people on JSA fell this month, and the number claiming one of the other main out-of-work benefits is also improving
The details are:
- claimant unemployment was 1,479 thousand in June 2013, down 21.2 thousand on the month and down 117.7 thousand on the year
- the claimant count rate is 4.4%, down 0.1 points on the month and down 0.4 points on the year
- the figures continue to be affected by welfare reform, including re-assessment of existing claims for incapacity benefits – this is likely to have added to the JSA caseload between June and July
- in the year to November 2012, the number claiming incapacity benefits fell 75,600 to 2.50 million – the most recent provisional figure for May 2013 suggests the caseload has since fallen further to 2.46 million
- in the year to November 2012, the number of lone parents on Income Support fell 71,100 to 510,060 – the provisional figure for May 2013 is 500,000, suggesting that the numbers are continuing to fall
The number of redundancies fell and unfilled vacancies rose on the quarter
The details are:
- there were 118 thousand redundancies in March to May 2013, down 19 thousand on the previous quarter and 29 thousand on the year
- the ONS vacancy survey estimates an average of 529 thousand unfilled vacancies in the three months to June 2013, up 24 thousand on the previous quarter and 56 thousand on the year
Total weekly pay in May 2013 was up by 1.7% over the year
The growth in regular weekly pay, excluding bonuses, was up by 1% on the year.
Labour Market Statistics, July 2013
The Labour Market Statistics, July 2013 are available on the Office of National Statistics website.
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