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The latest employment figures show inflation taking a bigger bite out of regular pay and an unexpected jump in the jobless rate at a time when people are seeking to better shield themselves from the cost of living crisis.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the jobless rate rose to 3.8% in the three months to April despite a new record high for employment.
It is potentially explained by a rise in the number of students, who are measured as economically inactive, as the ONS has already reported record numbers seeking paid work or better-paid employment.
There has been a rush to secure higher take-home pay as inflation has surged – striking a 40-year high in April following an unprecedented hike in the energy price cap.
The squeeze on incomes from rising bills across the board has contributed to a marked slowdown in the economy and sparked a bitter union fight for pay awards to match inflation.
The ONS reported that real wages – a measure of regular wage growth when inflation is factored in – had now dropped by 2.2% on the year from 1.2% during the three months to March – partly reflecting the leap in inflation in April.
When the effects of bonuses were factored in, wages continued to be in growth but at just 0.4%.
Sam Beckett, ONS head of economic statistics, said: “Today’s figures continue to show a mixed picture for the labour market.
“While the number of people in employment is up again in the three months to April, the figure remains below pre-pandemic levels.
“Moreover, although the number of people neither in work nor looking for a job has fallen slightly in the latest period, that remains well up on where it was before COVID-19 struck.
“At the same time, unemployment is close to a 50-year low point and there was a record low number of redundancies.
“Job vacancies are still slowly rising, too. At a new record level of 1.3 million, this is over half a million more than before the onset of the pandemic.”
She added: “The…
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Source : skynews
