UK labour market figures

Among the 41.3 million people of working age (16-64 years old) in the UK, around 75.5% (31.2 million) are working. 24.5% (10.1 million) are not working. That means three in four are working and one in four are not working.

Of the 10.1 million out of work, most (8.7 million) are economically inactive. The other 1.4 million of the people out of work are unemployed. Overall, most people who are working (24.1 million) work more than 30 hours per week, while 8.4 million people work less than 30 hours per week.

People on furlough are counted as working. Despite this, there was a decline in the number of people in work at the beginning of the pandemic. As Covid restrictions have been eased, people have entered back into work again. However, today there are around 500,000 fewer people in work than before the pandemic.

There are also 380,000 more people who are economically inactive compared to before the pandemic. In particular, there are 210,000 more students than before the pandemic. The number of unemployed people increased through the pandemic, and then fell. The unemployment rate was 4.0% before the pandemic and is now 4.3%. This is an increase of 57,000 people.

1.2 million job vacancies were advertised in September to November 2021, a rise of more than 400,000 compared to before the pandemic and a record high. All industries have at least as many jobs on offer now as before the pandemic. The three industries reporting the most vacancies were health and social care, hospitality, and retail and wholesale industries. Businesses report that a lack of suitable applicants was the main reason for their difficulties in recruiting staff.