Member Article

New milestone as UK unemployment falls below 6% but wage growth ‘sluggish’

A new milestone has been reached with the unemployment rate falling below 6% to 5.8% for the first time in 6 years, however Labour has criticised the government for failing to do more to keep up the pace of wage growth.

For September to November 2014, 73% of people aged from 16 to 64 were in work, up from 72.0% for a year earlier.

There were 1.91 million unemployed people. This was 58,000 fewer than for June to August 2014, the smallest quarterly fall since July to September 2013. Comparing September to November 2014 with a year earlier, there were 418,000 fewer unemployed people.

Job vacancies have risen by 127,000 to hit a 14-year record high and there are around 700,000 job opportunities across the country.

Wages are also increasing above the cost of living, meaning more money in people’s pockets. Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that regular pay was up 1.8% and private sector pay was up 2.2%, well ahead of the inflation rate.

The total number of people without a job has fallen by nearly one million since 2010.

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said: “We have reached an important milestone in this country’s jobs-led recovery – with unemployment falling below 6% for the first time in 6 years. Welfare reform has played an instrumental part in this.

“We know that British people want to work hard and get on, but all too often in the past the welfare state hindered rather than helped thwarting ambition and killing off hope.

“We put an end to that and now the number of people claiming the main out-of-work benefits is the lowest for a generation, and there are record numbers of people in work.

“Thanks to our long-term economic plan, businesses are feeling confident about the future. Jobs are being created and salaries are rising, meaning that increasing numbers of people are feeling the security and hope for the future that comes with a regular wage.”

Rachel Reeves MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, responding to today’s Labour Market Statistics, said: “Today’s fall in overall unemployment is welcome, but wages remain sluggish and working people are £1,600 a year worse off since 2010.

“The Tory cost-of-living crisis and the Tory low-wage economy has left millions of people who do the right thing, work and contribute struggling to make ends meet and pay the bills.

“A Labour government will tackle the Tory cost-of-living crisis and the Tory low-wage economy by raising the National Minimum Wage to £8 an hour, ensuring more people are paid a Living Wage, getting more homes built and extending free childcare provision. We will get the next generation into work by boosting apprenticeships.

“Tackling low pay is part of our tough, but balanced plan to get the deficit down and earn our way to higher living standards for all, not just a few at the top.

“Today’s figures also show a worrying rise in youth unemployment - the government should bring in a compulsory jobs guarantee to get young people into work.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .