Unemployment continues to rise

The number of people claiming out of work benefits in Rochdale continues to rise, with 125 new claimants seeking help last month.

The jobless figures in Rochdale rocketed by more than 13% in February, and a further 1.7% surge between March and April leaves the highest figure for well over 10 years.

The overall total went up by 125 last month to 7,282, representing 5.7% of the working population.

Rochdale has the highest percentage of people out of work in the whole of Greater Manchester, while unemployment has soared by a massive 81.7% since April last year.

Commenting on the figures for Greater Manchester, which show a similar trend, Samantha Dunbar, Policy Manager for Employment and Skills at Greater Manchester Chamber, said: "The drop in manufacturing jobs nationally has been mirrored locally, with the highest increase in claimants concentrated in the industrial parts of Greater Manchester.

"Results from our Quarterly Economic Surveys have indicated that employers have been doing their utmost to preserve employee positions, with many companies choosing not to make people redundant in the early stages of the economic downturn.

"With the onset of the new financial year, such businesses have had to make some difficult decisions - no business takes letting hardworking employees go lightly."