Employment in the public sector rose by 95,000 in the year to June, compared with an increase of 113,000 in the previous year to June 2004, official figures show. In the year to June, employment in the private sector rose by 216,000.
The largest increase in employment was in health and social services (up by 60,000 employees). There were also increases in education (19,000), public administration (17,000), and the police service – including civilians (12,000).
Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the number of employees in the Civil Service was equal to that of last year, at 570,000. However, the June 2005 figure includes for the first time about 12,000 public sector employees who previously worked for under local government in the Magistrates’ Courts Service.
From 1991 to 1998, public sector employment fell every year, with an overall reduction of 816,000 over that period. From 1998 public sector employment rose every year to 5.84 million people. This is 680,000 higher than in June 1998 but still below the levels of the early 1990s.
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