The number of people unemployed in the UK has risen during the first three months of the year, official figures have shown.
According to the Office for National Statistics, the number of unemployed rose by 13,000 to 1.7 million in the three months to March.
However, the number of people on Jobseeker’s Allowance is down 57,100 on the year, and down 15,700 in April to 890,000.
John Philpott, chief economist at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), said the number of women in part-time roles had fallen by 75,000.
He said that job cuts for women were largely the result of the ongoing programme of cutbacks in public services, especially in the NHS.
“Despite this, women account for less than 40% of the quarterly increase in unemployment,” Philpott said.
The data showed that the pace of average earnings growth slowed in the quarter to March. The average wage in the UK rose by an annual rate of 4.5%, compared with the previous month’s 4.6% increase.
