The Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) most recent labour market data shows that, between January and March, job vacancies fell by 30,000 or 3.3% to 889,000 – the 24th consecutive period to witness a fall.
The employment rate also fell in the last quarter and was below the estimate from a year ago, at 74.4%. Unemployment rose to 4.4%.
The ONS also revealed that the economic inactivity rate for those aged 16 to 64 was 22.1%. Annual growth in employees’ average regular earnings remains “relatively strong” at 5.7%.
New work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall commented: “Spiralling economic inactivity, rising unemployment and the UK standing alone as the only G7 country where the employment rate is still not back to pre-pandemic levels. This is a truly dire inheritance which the Government is determined to tackle.”