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Responding to the labour market stats release by ONS on 10 June 2025, Stephen Evans, Chief Executive of Learning and Work Institute, said:
“Warning signs are growing in the labour market with payroll employees falling 274,000 compared to a year ago and vacancies now 83,000 below pre-pandemic levels. Payroll employment fell particularly sharply in retail and hospitality, down 200,000 on last year. This could reflect a combination of economic and international uncertainty and rising employer costs like the minimum wage and national insurance. But the figures are subject to substantial revision so we should be cautious in drawing conclusions. The Chancellor’s Spending Review needs to help chart a course to long-term growth, including raising employment and living standards.”
Dr Helen Gray, Chief Economist of Learning and Work Institute, said:
“While the rate of economic inactivity appears to be on a downward trend, an additional 740,000 people of working age are economically inactive now compared with the period immediately before the pandemic. Nearly 2 million people who are economically inactive want to work, but more than a third of this group have a long-term health problem and only one-in-ten people with a disability get help to find work each year. More needs to be done by government and employers to ensure good quality employment opportunities are open to all, irrespective of their personal circumstances or where in the country they live.”
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