UK sees 2.45 mn jobless in Sept qtr

A whopping 2.45 million people were unemployed in the UK in the three months ended September, indicating that labour market recovery remains fragile.

The jobless rate in the September quarter stood at 7.7 per cent, marginally down by 0.1 per cent compared to previous three months, according to official data released today.

"The total number of unemployed people fell by 9,000 over the quarter to reach 2.45 million," UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

In the September quarter, the count of unemployed males dropped by 40,000 to 1.43 million.

However, the number of jobless women rose by 31,000 on the quarter to reach 1.02 million, the highest since 1988.

 

Going by the official figures, the count of people -- without a job for up to six months -- increased by 21,000 to 1.18 million in the September quarter.

Meanwhile, the number of people seeking jobless benefits fell by 3,700 to 1.47 million between September and October.

"The number of male claimants fell by 5,400 on the month to reach 1.03 million but the number of female claimants increased by 1,700 to reach 431,400," ONS said.

Thousands of jobs evaporated in the UK during the global financial meltdown in 2008-09 and the national economy is also witnessing a slow recovery.