YORKSHIRE missed out on an Olympics-inspired jobs boost – as the region posted a 23,000 rise in unemployment.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that UK unemployment fell by 7,000 in the quarter to July to 2.59m, a jobless rate of 8.1%.
The ONS said the number claiming jobseekers allowance last month was 1.57m, down by 15,000 on July and the largest monthly fall since June 2010.
London accounted for 5,500 of the fall in the claimant count, suggesting a jobs boost from the London Games 2012.
But the separate International Labour Organisation unemployment figures showed unemployment in Yorkshire rose by about 23,000 to stand at 272,000 for the three months to July – representing 10% of the region’s workforce.
The ONS data showed the claimant count for local parliamentary constituencies also rose last month with Huddersfield up by 27 at 4,013 – representing one in nine of 16 to 64-year-olds in the town.
The Colne Valley figure was up by 50 at 2,671 or 5.3% of the working age population while Dewsbury’s tally was 19 higher at 2,882 or 5.6%.
Nationally, the number of people in work increased by 236,000 to 29.6m – the largest quarterly rise for two years.
The ONS said the Olympics was likely to have been a driving factor behind the jump in employment, with London accounting for 91,000 of the rise.
Other figures revealed the number of part-time workers increased by 134,000 to reach 8.12m, the highest since 1992.
The ONS also revealed that public sector employment fell for the 11th quarter in a row, by 235,000 to 5.7m.
However, the number of people out of work for over a year was the highest for more than 16 years – at 904,000, up 22,000 on the previous quarter.
Those classed as economically inactive, including those looking after a sick relative, on early retirement or who have given up looking for work, fell by 181,000 to 9m.
Chris Wood, partner at Clough Corporate Solutions in Cleckheaton and a committee member with insolvency industry trade body R3 in Yorkshire, said the national rise in employment was “heartening news” following August’s Insolvency Service statistics showing that personal insolvencies were also down on the quarter.
He said: “Both of these are very positive signs for the state of the nation’s personal finances, but we should not get complacent.
“There are large numbers of people who – in spite of their employment status – are hiding real financial difficulty and fall outside of the official statistics.
“Research by R3 has found that 54% of people are worried about their current level of debt and there are swathes of people in informal debt management plans.
“Furthermore, 28% of people have no savings at all and the same percentage believe their personal financial situation will worsen in the coming months.”
John Walker, chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said the continued fall in unemployment was good news, but that for the economy to recover at a faster pace more people need to find full-time work.
He added: “Policies targeted at stimulating job creation, such as extending the National Insurance contributions holiday, are needed to give small firms the confidence to create full-time positions and take on staff.”
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said the Government needed a long-term plan of job creation to ease the UK’s economic woes.
He said: “In areas such as Yorkshire and Humberside, and the West Midlands – where unemployment is already among the highest in the UK – unemployment continues to go up, meaning yet more misery for families struggling to get by.”
