Jobless total reaches 17-year high
Posted by Dan Martin in Staff, Business trends on Wed, 14/12/2011 - 10:58
The total number of people out of work is at the highest level since 1994 with the figure for the young unemployed the most in 19 years.
Another 128,000 people joined the jobless ranks in the three months to October taking the total to 2.64m and the highest for 17 years, official figures showed.
Unemployment among 16-24 year olds also rose to 1.027m, topping the record set during the last quarter and the number of jobless women increased by 45,000 to 1.1m, the highest since 1988.
Those out of work for more than a year increased by 19,000 to 868,000, the worst figure since 1996, and jobseeker's allowance claimants rose by 3,000 to 1.6 million, the ninth consecutive monthly hike and the highest total since the beginning of 2010.
The claimant figure was however lower than the 15,000 increase predicted by economists.
Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB union, said: "A double-dip Osborne recession, rising unemployment, rapidly falling living standards are the Tory/Lib Dem miserable Christmas gifts to the nation. The millions of workers without jobs face a miserable Christmas and a bleak New Year.
"Instead of attacking pensions and employment rights and making it easier to sack people, the government should be pursuing policies to create jobs, which is something it is failing to do.
"Where are all the jobs that it promised to make up for the 710,000 jobs cut in the public sector as an act of deliberate policy?"
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