Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Latest NewsEconomics, government & businessJob creation and lossesLabour market

UK unemployment hits 1.97 million

by Lindsay Clark 11 Feb 2009
by Lindsay Clark 11 Feb 2009

UK unemployment reached 1.97 million between October and December, up 146,000 on the previous quarter, according to figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

The independent research unit found unemployment rate reached 6.3%, the highest since 1998, as the UK economy weakens. Unemployment was up 1.1 percentage points from a year earlier, the ONS found.

For December, the number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance rose by 73,800 to reach 1.23 million.

Business leaders are meeting prime minister Gordon Brown later today to discuss the government’s strategy on managing unemployment and increasing job creation through government subsidies, amid reports the scheme is in chaos.

News on unemployment is set to get worse as companies including Nissan, Microsoft, RBS and engineering group Cookson were among a range of companies to announce redundancies this year in the face of the economic slow down.

Employment trends were mixed in the industrial sector. There were 2.8 million employee jobs in manufacturing industries in the three months to December 2008, down 101,000 on a year earlier, the ONS found. Over the same period, employee jobs in mining, energy and water supply industries increased by 2,000 to reach 180,000.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: “The UK began the global recession with a relatively strong jobs position, but our advantage is beginning to disappear as redundancies mount. UK workers are among the easiest and cheapest to lay off in Europe – and when they find themselves out of work they get some of the poorest treatment.

“We now see the flip side of the poor protection for UK workers that the government lauds as a flexible labour market. No doubt we will be told that this means that we will be able to recover more quickly when the recession eases, but while this may be true for some relatively low-skilled jobs, employers will find it hard to put back together skilled teams that really create the wealth which will drive recovery.”

Better treatment for those who find themselves unemployed is also vital, according to the TUC. It said the government should give greater powers to the Jobcentre Plus Rapid Response Service so that employers cannot block support for those facing redundancy.

Avatar
Lindsay Clark

previous post
HR job vacancies fall for seventh straight month
next post
RBS planning up to 2,300 job cuts

You may also like

NHS to end full pay for Covid-19 sick...

4 Jul 2022

Government childcare plans aim to reduce cost of...

4 Jul 2022

Whistleblowing lawyer awarded £423k by Foreign Office

4 Jul 2022

Diversity and inclusion: where does the buck stop?

4 Jul 2022

Quarter of workers feel unsupported after bereavement

1 Jul 2022

Employment law changes for 2022 and beyond: update...

1 Jul 2022

BT workers vote for strike action over pay

1 Jul 2022

Chief financial officers now more involved in HR

1 Jul 2022

Top 10 HR questions June 2022: Former employees

1 Jul 2022

Pay all care workers a £10.50 hourly minimum...

30 Jun 2022
  • NSPCC revamps its learning strategy with child wellbeing at its heart PROMOTED | The NSPCC’s mission is to prevent abuse and neglect...Read more
  • Diversity versus inclusion: Why the difference matters PROMOTED | It’s possible for an environment to be diverse, but not inclusive...Read more
  • Five steps for organisations across the globe to become more skills-driven PROMOTED | The shift in the world of work has been felt across the globe...Read more
  • The future of workforce development PROMOTED | Northumbria University and partners share insight...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+