UK unemployment hit its highest rate for 11 years today, with 1.82m now officially out of work.
The figures represent a 140,000 jump in the three months to September for unemployment in the UK and a 5.4% increase overall although experts are predicting that worse is to come as we head into 2009, with two million predicted to be unemployed by the end of the year and as many as 2.8m by the end of 2010.
The number of people claiming the Jobseeker's Allowance rose by 36,500 to 980,900 in October - the highest monthly increase since 1992.
The findings come on the back of several announcements from companies regarding redundancies, with more than 5,000 combined job cuts announced in the past week by companies including Virgin Media, Yell, GlaxoSmithKline and Carlsberg-Tetley.
Union’s reacted to the announcement by calling on the government to find ways of stimulating the economy.
Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of the Unite trade union, said: "Only urgent and widespread action by government to protect jobs and homes will help hard-pressed families through the worst of this global turmoil.”
GMB general secretary Paul Kenny said: "The chancellor is right to spend money to keep people in work rather than spend money on unemployment benefit."
"He needs to keep the pedal to the metal in terms of spending on regeneration," he added.
These latest jobs figures came shortly before the Bank of England produced its gloomiest set of forecasts for in more than a decade.
Comments
Post new comment