Member Article

North West job seekers numbers fall again

The latest figures issued by the Office for National Statistics show that 49,600 people were claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) in Greater Manchester in July – a decrease of 2,290 (4.4%%) when compared with the figure for June 2014 of 51,900.

The North West saw a monthly decline of 3.9%, while for Great Britain the fall was 2.5%. As a proportion of the resident working-age population, 2.8% of people in Greater Manchester were claiming JSA in July – higher than the North West (2.6%) and Great Britain (2.4%).

Youth unemployment (JSA claimants aged 16-24) in Greater Manchester decreased on a monthly basis between June and July, falling by approximately 395 to around 11,230.

On an annual basis, the number of youth JSA claimants is 46.1% (9,615) lower than this time last year.

Long-term (6 months+) claimants in Greater Manchester declined in July 2014 to 23,535, down by 1,285 (5.2%) on the July figure.

On an annual basis the number of long-term claimants is now 37.2% (13,900) lower than this time last year.

The North West (34.9%) and Great Britain (32.8%) also saw annual declines in long-term claimants.

Stephen Overell, principal for employment and skills at New Economy, said: “The numbers of unemployed claimants in Greater Manchester have at last fallen below 50,000 – an important post-recession milestone.

“It’s been another good month for people moving off benefits, perhaps picking up seasonal summer work as the economic situation improved.

“Almost 3,000 people ended their JSA claim in the month of July, which is less than the usually large monthly fall in June, but still very positive.

“The great unknown behind these figures is the impact of welfare reform and benefit sanctions. How many people stop claiming because they find work and how many because they just stop claiming and vanish from the system? We do not yet have the evidence to answer this question properly.

“We do know, however, that slightly under 8% of claimants have received a benefit sanction in Greater Manchester and so may have lost their JSA for a period of time, and roughly 6,000 unemployed young people trying out the new Universal Credit reform in Greater Manchester are not being counted in the JSA statistics.

“The JSA figures may, therefore, paint a flattering picture of what’s really happening in the world of work.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .