UK unemployment reaches 2.47m

The number of unemployed in the United Kingdom has risen again. The jobless rate was 7.9 % for the three months to July 2009, according to official figures.

The number of unemployed people increased by 210,000 over the quarter and by 743,000 over the year, to reach 2.47 m, according to the Office of National Statistics. The last time unemployment was this high was in November 1996.

The number of people claiming unemployment benefit increased by 24,400 from July to 1.61m.

The number of job places has fallen 174,000 over the year.

“The early stages of the economic recovery are likely to be too muted to result in strong job creation.

OECD

There have been some signs that the developed nations are starting to emerge from recession, but jobless rates are expected to lag behind for some time.

Unemployment could continue to climb, warned the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. ‘The early stages of the economic recovery are likely to be too muted to result in strong job creation,’ said the OECD. ‘The UK unemployment rate is expected to continue to rise in the coming months and to remain at a high level through 2010.’

The average unemployment rate for the OECD area reached a post-war high of 8.5% in July.

‘It is essential that governments focus on helping jobseekers in the months to come,’ said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría at the launch of the OECD Employment Outlook report.