Press Story

Analysis of today's unemployment figures, by the think tank IPPR, shows that:

Overall, UK unemployment rose by 118,000 in the three months to November to 2.68 million, the highest level since 1994
Private sector jobs have only risen by 5,000 but cuts in public sector employment, for the same period are 67,000
Overall, 857,000 people have been unemployed for more than a year - almost a third of all jobseekers
Of those, 247,000 young people (aged 16-24) have been unemployed for more than a year
More than a million (1,043,000) young people (aged 16-24) are now unemployed, the highest since comparable records began in 1992, and a rise of 51,000 from the last quarter
432,000 people over 50 are now unemployed, up 48,000 on the quarter
More than 40 per cent of unemployed over fifties have been out of work for more than a year, up 23,000 to182,000
More than a million women (1,128,000) are now unemployed, the highest for 23 years.
Of those, over a quarter of women (301,000) have been unemployed for more than a year.

Kayte Lawton, IPPR Senior Research Fellow, said:

"The new 'Youth Contract' cannot come soon enough for a generation of young people experiencing the worst unemployment since comparable records began in 1992. But the Youth Contract should be just a first step. Government needs to guarantee a job for everyone out of work for more than a year. The next priority should be areas of the country experiencing the combination of both high unemployment and a low number of vacancies.

"The longer someone is unemployed, the less likely they are to ever return to work. Being out of work for more than a year can have a scarring effect, making it harder to get a job as well as having a negative impact on one's health and well-being. This means that even when employment starts to pick up again, they will find it hard to compete with other jobseekers and could find themselves permanently shut out of the jobs market.

"The government should guarantee everyone who has been unemployed for more than a year a job at the minimum wage in local government or the voluntary sector. But with that right should come the responsibility to take that job or risk losing their benefits."

Notes to Editors

Unemployment figures published today are available from:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/lms/labour-market-statistics/january-2012/index.html

IPPR North's analysis of areas with high unemployment and low vacancy rates:

http://www.ippr.org/press-releases/111/8518/up-to-twenty-job-seekers-chasing-every-vacancy-in-struggling-pockets-of-the-uk-

IPPR's report - Making the case for universal childcare - is available to download from:

http://ippr.org/publications/55/8382/making-the-case-for-universal-childcare

IPPR's report - Jobs for the Future: The path back to full employment in the UK - is available from http://www.ippr.org/publications/55/7938/jobs-for-the-future-the-path-back-to-full-employment-in-the-uk

IPPR's report - 10 ways to promote growth - is available from http://bit.ly/IPPR8266

Contact

Richard Darlington, 07525 481 602, r.darlington@ippr.org

Tim Finch, 07595 920899, t.finch@ippr.org