Labour Market Overview UK - November 2024

12th November 2024

Estimates for payrolled employees in the UK decreased by 9,000 (0.0%) between August and September 2024, but rose by 136,000 (0.4%) between September 2023 and September 2024.

Payrolled employees fell by 9,000 (0.0%) over the quarter but rose by 182,000 (0.6%) over the year, when looking at July to September 2024, which is the period comparable with our Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates.

The early estimate of payrolled employees for October 2024 decreased by 5,000 (0.0%) on the month but increased by 95,000 (0.3%) on the year, to 30.4 million. The October 2024 estimate should be treated as a provisional estimate and is likely to be revised when more data are received next month.

Increased volatility of LFS estimates, resulting from smaller achieved sample sizes, means that estimates of change should be treated with additional caution. We recommend using them as part of our suite of labour market indicators, alongside Workforce Jobs (WFJ), Claimant Count data, and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Real Time Information (RTI) estimates.

The UK employment rate for people aged 16 to 64 years was estimated at 74.8% in July to September 2024. This is largely unchanged on a year ago, but up in the latest quarter.

The UK unemployment rate for people aged 16 years and over was estimated at 4.3% in July to September 2024. This is above estimates of a year ago, and up in the latest quarter.

The UK economic inactivity rate for people aged 16 to 64 years was estimated at 21.8% in July to September 2024. This is below estimates of a year ago, and down in the latest quarter.

The UK Claimant Count for October 2024 increased both on the month and on the year, to 1.806 million.

The estimated number of vacancies in the UK decreased in August to October 2024, by 35,000 on the quarter to 831,000. Vacancies decreased on the quarter for the 28th consecutive period but are still above pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic levels.

Annual growth in employees' average regular earnings excluding bonuses in Great Britain was 4.8% in July to September 2024, and annual growth in total earnings including bonuses was 4.3%. This total annual growth is affected by the civil service one-off payments made in July and August 2023.

Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH) for regular pay was 1.9% in July to September 2024, and for total pay was 1.4%.

There were an estimated 48,000 working days lost because of labour disputes across the UK in September 2024.

Read the full report HERE