The employment numbers continue to be surprisingly strong, with a rise of 154,000 to 29.73 million in the October-December 2012 period, and a huge 584,000 increase over 12 months. Interestingly, the rise in employment was more than accounted for by an increase in full-time employment of 197,000 in the latest three months, with part-time employment down 43,000.
Unemployment, however, is stuck at around 2.5 million, and slipped by only 14,000 in the latest three months. Reducing unemployment at a time of strong workforce growth is a challenge. However, there was an encouraging 23,000 fall in the claimant count, to 1.54 million, in January.
Pay continues to be weak, up just 1.4% over the past year. More here.
Also yesterday, three members of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee – Sir Mervyn King, Paul Fisher and David Miles – voted to increase quantitative easing by £25 billion. This was a surprise. More here.
This piece is cross-posted from David Smith’s Economics UK with permission.
One Response to “UK Employment Up by a Further 154,000, Bank Split on Policy”
Tzctinte • February 26th, 2013 at 4:45 am
Salaries are depleted in real terms after years of outsourcing, redundancies.and companies going bust.
Unsurprisingly employers are going bargain hunting, in an equivalent of a Xmas sale of skills.
The regular people are earning less, while necessities rise way above inflation (which measurement, at least in the UK, seems to be constantly into question).
So the 1% are having their cake, eating it, and don't intend to share it.
