The UK labour market has seen an unexpected rise in unemployment as well as a fall in inactivity, as more men in particular started looking for work.
The Office of National Statistics (ONS) issued its latest employment and unemployment figures on May 16, reporting the main trends of the UK labour market.
The unemployment rate for January to March 2023 increased by 0.1 percentage points on the quarter to 3.9 percent. The unemployment numbers are the highest since the three months to January 2022.
The increase was largely caused by the highest number of unemployed people for over 12 months.
The number of vacancies fell by 55,000 quarter-on-quarter to 1.08 million in February to April 2023, marking the 10th fall in a row. The drop reflected “uncertainty across industries, as survey respondents continue to cite economic pressures as a factor in holding back on recruitment,” the ONS said….