United Kingdom - Unemployment





United Kingdom: Unemployment

Mnemonic LBU.IGBR
Unit Ths. # 3-mo MA, SA
Adjustments Seasonally Adjusted
Monthly 2.94 %
Data Jan 2024 1,358
Dec 2023 1,319

Series Information

Source U.K. Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Release Labour market overview, UK
Frequency Monthly
Start Date 3/31/1971
End Date 1/31/2024

United Kingdom: Labor

Reference Last Previous Units Frequency
Labor Force Jan 2024 34,533 34,494 Ths. # 3-mo MA, SA Monthly
Labor Force Employment Jan 2024 33,174 33,174 Ths. # 3-mo MA, SA Monthly
Unemployment Jan 2024 1,358 1,319 Ths. # 3-mo MA, SA Monthly
Unemployment Rate Jan 2024 3.93 3.83 % 3-mo MA, SA Monthly
Wage & Salaries 2023 Q3 -85 -66 Mil. GBP, SA Quarterly
Agriculture Employment 2017 376,298 378,714 # Annual

Release Information

For the U.K., summary results of the labor force survey.

As of October 2023, the data dimensions are:

  • Indicators: Labor force, employment, unemployment (ILO definition), active rate, employment rate, unemployment rate, inactive rate
  • Working age range: 16 to 64 years
  • Other age ranges: 16-17, 18-24, 25-34, 35-49

Active:

  • Measurements:
    • Thousands count (Ths. #)
    • Percent (%)
  • Cumulation: Three-month moving average (3-mo MA)
  • Adjustment: Seasonally adjusted (NSA)
  • Native frequency: Monthly
  • Start dates: 1971m3, 1984m5, 1992m5
  • Geo coverage:
    • Country
    • Region (IGBR_^^^^)

Predecessors:

  • Monthly: 1,082 series, start 1931m1 to 2009m3, end 2023m7
  • Quarterly: 1,216 series, start 1959Q2 to 2009Q3, end 2023Q2
  • Annual: 1,216 series, start 1891 to 2010, end 2022

The source writes:

Everybody aged 16 or over is either employedunemployed or economically inactive. The employment estimates include all people in work including those working part-time. People not working are classed as unemployed if they have been looking for work within the last 4 weeks and are able to start work within the next 2 weeks. A common misconception is that the unemployment statistics are a count of people on benefits; this is not the case as they include unemployed people not claiming benefits.

Jobless people who have not been looking for work within the last 4 weeks or who are unable to start work within the next 2 weeks are classed as economically inactive. Examples of economically inactive people include people not looking for work because they are students, looking after the family or home, because of illness or disability or because they have retired.

Estimates of employment, unemployment, economic inactivity, hours worked and redundancies are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS), a survey of households. The LFS is sampled such that it is representative of the UK population over a 3 month period, not for single month periods. Most of the figures in this statistical bulletin come from surveys of households or businesses and are therefore estimates rather than precise figures.

Notes on Employment

  1. Employment consists of employees, self-employed people, unpaid family workers and people on government supported training and employment programs.
  2. Unpaid family workers are people who work in a family business who do not receive a formal wage or salary but benefit from the profits of that business.
  3. The government supported training and employment programs series does not include all people on these programs; it only includes people engaging in any form of work, work experience or work-related training who are not included in the employees or self-employed series. People on these programs NOT engaging in any form of work, work experience or work-related training are not included in the employment estimates; they are classified as unemployed or economically inactive.

Labour market statistics are designed to reflect the various aspects of labour market activity in the UK. Statistics cover employment, unemployment and the Claimant Count, economic inactivity, redundancies, earnings, jobs, vacancies, labour productivity and labour disputes.

ONS publishes a set of labour market statistics on a monthly basis for the UK as a whole and for each country and region of Great Britain. Data for Northern Ireland are published by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland.

Labour Market estimates come from a wide variety of sources. The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is the main source of data, and provides estimates of employment, unemployment, economic activity and inactivity, hours worked and redundancies. Business surveys are also used to compile data on workforce jobs, vacancies, average weekly earnings and labour disputes. Much of the data is produced using concepts and definitions set out by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

The main users of labour market data include government and the Bank of England, who use the data to make and monitor government policies. There are also a wide variety of other users such as businesses, national and local government, academia, and the general public.

The source writes:

In official statistics, revisions to published estimates occur for a number of reasons: from the on-going incorporation of late survey data, to occasional methodological improvements and changes in international classifications and standards.

Revision policies are used to manage the timing of the release of revisions to published estimates. The National Statistics Code of Practice includes a Protocol on Revisions which provides a broad framework for how the release of revised estimates should be managed.

ONS publishes, as part of this policy, our planned cycle of revisions. This is available to all users of our data. Each Labour Market Statistical Bulletin contains details of all significant revisions in that particular release, both planned and unplanned. Further, each Statistical Bulletin should announce, at least one month in advance wherever possible, details of forthcoming revisions. ONS also publishes articles explaining developments that have led to revisions in our data.

From time to time revisions need to be made outside of this timetable. Examples of such revisions include improvements to methodology, revisions to data that feed into labour market datasets and the discovery of incorrect data through our quality assurance procedures. Each of these revisions will be examined to see if the effects are significant in terms of the degree of change or whether the changes affect the story the data portray.

Planned cycle of revision:

The Labour Force Survey (monthly) is revised annually (month not specified). Usually, the last three years are revised due to seasonal adjustments reviews and new population estimates.

  • Sep 2005 - Initial version.
  • May 2017 - Overhaul.
  • 30 Oct 2023, Phillip Thorne - Change in method and corpus.
  • 09 Nov 2023, Adrian Riveros - Improved the Revisions section.
  • 1 Dec 2023 - Terminated LFS by sex in regions.
  • 13 Feb 2024 - Change in source table: Further reading.