Unemployment falls again to 2.5m (or 7.8%)

Graham_Devon

Good news overall.

However, the ONS has released stats that state over half a million extra people are now working part time compared to 2008.

There are also just under 400,000 fewer full time jobs.

Long term unemployed has also fallen, which is brilliant news. Wonder how much of an impact workfare had, considering people found themselves having to do something anyway? Long temr unemployment is still far too high, but 15,000 fewer compared to a year ago is the right direction at least.

Pay, in real terms is being cut. Average pay is only up £6 per week since this time last year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21517854

Conrad

Although the Tories are painted as nasty, many hitherto long term unemployed people will one day look back and say it was the massive kick up the butt they needed to get back into the work habit. Cruel to be kind. Changing perceptions and using peer pressure to get the excuse makers into work.

coastline

can be viewed online..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfmBRhD6-Nk

tube channel....some detailed reports loaded recently.

http://www.youtube.com/user/onsstats

nicko33

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Good news overall.

Can't win can you.
Post bad news and people pop up to blame the messenger.
Post good news and hardly anyone wants to talk about it

grizzly1911

GDP/Productivity falling apparently so what are all these new employed people doing?

[Deleted User]

the change between oct and dec was 14.000 fewer out of work,odd when argos alone took on around 12,000 temp xmas staff
also youth unemployment rose by 11,000
the truth is that jobs or the lack of them take time to catch up with the real economy,and forecasters still think unemployment will rise significantly this year,before really falling after 2017
we should also look at the number being pushed of the dole into workfare and the number working very short hours but counted as working,and the large numbers going self employed without capital or knowledge(and at least 40% of them will fail)
sorry but look deeper and it aint good news

Loanranger

grizzly1911 wrote: »

GDP/Productivity falling apparently so what are all these new employed people doing?

Ah, well, they're the folks who were working in the black economy and claiming while working, you know, like your window cleaner and your taxi driver.
Full marks to the government for getting these scroungers off benefits. That means that those who are genuinely in need can be helped.

daveyjp

But if these people are in low paid work they are still receiving benefits. It certainly appears they aren't adding anything to the productivity of the country.

Generali

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Good news overall.

However, the ONS has released stats that state over half a million extra people are now working part time compared to 2008.

There are also just under 400,000 fewer full time jobs.

Long term unemployed has also fallen, which is brilliant news. Wonder how much of an impact workfare had, considering people found themselves having to do something anyway? Long temr unemployment is still far too high, but 15,000 fewer compared to a year ago is the right direction at least.

Pay, in real terms is being cut. Average pay is only up £6 per week since this time last year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21517854

It is good news.

While the number of f/t jobs is down since 2008 IIRC it dropped and since has been rising again. Is that trend continuing.

My guess is that as the population ages there will be more people wanting a part time job to top up a pension or to ease them into retirement.

Graham_Devon

Generali wrote: »

It is good news.

While the number of f/t jobs is down since 2008 IIRC it dropped and since has been rising again. Is that trend continuing.

My guess is that as the population ages there will be more people wanting a part time job to top up a pension or to ease them into retirement.

There was a "mini investigation" into the job figures on the radio as I was driving home last night.

Everyone can have their say and get their point across at the moment, whether they want to suggest it's good, mediocre, or bad. One thing that is agreed upon is that most people are perplexed as to how productivity is falling, job losses are increasing, yet unemployment keeps falling.

There appears to be several reasons for the unemployed falling.

1. Part time jobs allowing 2 people to be employed compared to one full time job. Employers are keen to offer part time working apparently, as it doesn't cost them as much in NI? Not sure, but this has been a trend since tax credits were introduced. In some cases, 1 full time job is being split into 3 part time jobs, emplying 3 people compared to one.

2. Workfare. Apparently this IS having an impact to the unemployed numbers as anyone currently undergoing workfare is removed form the figures. I didn't believe this, but apparently it's true. Dunno how they came up with that blinder.

3. More and more people are becoming self employed, and 3 reasons were sighted for this. One reason was lack of work, so they become freelance and work for agencies. The second was employers switching employees to self employed, and again, using agencies. The third was the job centre advising unemployed people to become self employed for a variety of reasons, but the main one was, if you fit the requirements, you get more in tax credits than you would on the dole / income support. They expect around 300,000 to quit self employment around August when universal credit comes in. Theres a scandal if ever there was one.

4. The recent increase in education mandatory ages has removed loads of people from potential unemployment and kept them in education. This will hit September this year as the mandatory age increase falls out of the system.

wotsthat

A chap I heard on the radio also suggested that as wages were lagging inflation people were effectively pricing themselves into work.

I wonder also if there's less fraud and some of the self-employment increase is down to some self employed people simply not signing on as they might have done in the past?