Employment reaches record high

Employment reaches record high

According to the Office of National Statistics, the employment rate is at a joint record high of 74.8%, with 31.95 million people now in work – an increase of 372,000 on the year.

This rise has been driven by full time work with average weekly earnings up by 2.1% including bonuses.

There are 50,000 fewer unemployed people with unemployment remaining at its lowest rate since 1975 at 4.6%.

The figures also show:

• The female employment rate is at a joint record high of 70.2%, with nearly 15 million women in work.
• The unemployment rate for 18 – 24 year olds who have left full time education is 10.7% – a joint record low.
• There are around 770,000 vacancies in the economy at any one time.
• Separate figures out today show 1.2 million claims have been made to Universal Credit (UC). Of the 530,000 people now claiming UC, nearly 38% are in work.

Figures released by the JobCentre Plus show, for the Rochdale borough, there are 930 claimants aged between 18 and 24, down 10% from this time last year. This is 1,515 less than five years ago in 2012 (a reduction of 62%), and 1,450 less than 2010’s recession (a reduction of 61%).

For the total working age, there are currently 4,250 claimants, a 6% increase on last years’ figures. The five year figure is a reduction of 45%, with 3,433 less claimants, and 2,879 less than in 2010 (reduction 40%).

Sectors with notable employment activity include: warehouse and production operatives, smart meter vacancies, social care and retail opportunities within the Exchange shopping centre.

Due to a new retailer in the Middleton Arndale, notable employment activity includes the retail, warehouse, admin, hospitality, catering and customer service sectors. Another area of note is PVC driver roles (passenger carrying vehicles).

The JobCentre Plus online search feature, the Universal Job Match, found 1,797 vacancies in the last 30 days within a 5 mile radius of Rochdale.

There are also a variety of apprenticeships and training opportunities presented across the borough, particularly in retail, business administration, building, plumbing and joinery.