Chamber comment on today’s employment stats
Date published:
Arlen Pettitt, knowledge development manager, North East England Chamber of Commerce said: “These jobs numbers tell their own story, especially when put alongside yesterday’s GDP figure showing just 0.1% growth in February. The headline rate of unemployment may have fallen, however this isn’t the result of more people in work but rather more people drifting out of the labour market entirely, as seen in the rising economic inactivity figure.
“What we have is an economic recovery which is stuttering. Just as the cost of living is starting to bite for individuals, so too is the cost of doing business for our region’s employers. Our latest economic survey told us costs are the biggest worry for businesses, with nine in ten North East firms citing inflation as a concern and the same number saying energy prices.
“The Chancellor’s Spring Statement failed to address those concerns. It’s been two almost impossibly difficult years, and with more uncertainty ahead of us we need the Government to face up to reality and take some tangible steps to support business recovery.”
Editor notes:
Employment in the North East stands at 1,186,000, a rise of 2,300 (0.2%) over the quarter but a fall of 20,000 (1.7%) over the year. The North East employment rate stands at 70.2%. This compares to a rate of 75.5% nationally.
North East unemployment stands at 67,000, a fall of 4,800 (6.7%) over the quarter and a fall of 6,800 (9.2%) over the year. The North East unemployment rate stands at 5.4%. This compares to a national rate of 3.8%.
Economic inactivity in the North East stands at 417,000, an increase of 10,700 (2.6%) on the quarter and 36,000 (9.3%) on the year. The North East economic inactivity rate stands at 25.7%. This compares to a national rate of 21.4%.
The seasonally adjusted claimant count stands at 78,500 in the North East. This is a fall of 2,200 (2.7%) over the month and a fall of 38,800 over the year (33.1%). The claimant count rate for the North East is 5.6%.
The employment data covers the period December 2021 to February 2022. The provisional claimant count data is for March 2022.