In the three-month period from December 2022 to February 2023, this equated to 0.2 percentage points higher than September to November 2022, the Office for National Statistics reports today [18 April 2023]. 

The timeliest estimate of payrolled employees for March 2023 shows another monthly increase, up 31,000 on the revised February 2023 figures, to 30m, the ONS said.

The unemployment rate for December 2022 to February 2023 went up by 0.1 percentage points on the quarter to 3.8%. The ONS attributed the increase in unemployment to people unemployed for up to six months.

The economic inactivity rate decreased by 0.4 percentage points on the quarter, to 21.1% in December 2022 to February 2023. The decrease in economic inactivity during the latest three-month period was largely driven by people aged 16 to 24 years. 

“Looking at economic inactivity by reason, the quarterly decrease was largely driven by people inactive because they are students,” the ONS said.

In January to March 2023, the estimated number of vacancies fell by 47,000 on the quarter to 1,105,000. Vacancies fell on the quarter for the ninth consecutive period and reflect uncertainty across industries, as survey respondents continue to cite economic pressures as a factor in holding back on recruitment.

Growth in average total pay (including bonuses) was 5.9% and growth in regular pay (excluding bonuses) was 6.6% among employees in December 2022 to February 2023. Average regular pay growth for the private sector was 6.9% in December 2022 to February 2023 and 5.3% for the public sector. 

There were 348,000 working days lost because of labour disputes in February 2023, up from 210,000 in January 2023, the ONS said. Over three-fifths of the strikes in February were in the education sector.

Regionally, the ONS reports:

• For the three months ending February 2023, the highest employment rate estimate in the UK was in the South-West (79.5%) and the lowest was in Northern Ireland (71.9%).
• The largest increase in the employment rate compared with the same period last year was in the North-East, up by 2.9 percentage points, with the West Midlands and Wales both seeing the largest decreases of 1.8 percentage points.
• For the three months ending February 2023, the highest unemployment rate estimate in the UK was in London (4.7%) and the lowest was in the South-West (2.3%).
• The East of England had the largest increase in the unemployment rate compared with the same period last year, increasing by 0.9 percentage points, with the North-East seeing the largest decrease of 1.1 percentage points.