The number of jobless people in the UK has dropped below levels seen before the pandemic struck for the first time, but earnings continue to fall behind rocketing inflation, according to official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said there were 1.34 million unemployed in the quarter to January, down 88,000 on the previous three months and below the 1.36 million recorded in December to February 2020.
But the figures revealed the tightening squeeze of the cost-of-living crisis, as regular pay failed to keep up with soaring inflation, with average weekly earnings excluding bonuses up 3.8% between November and January. When taking rising prices into account, as measured by Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation, wages fell by 1.6% compared with a year earlier, according to the ONS.
Experts have warned that the pressure on household finances will intensify due to the Ukraine conflict, with eye-watering gas and fuel prices set to see inflation rise from 5.5% currently to nearly 9% or more in April. Chancellor Rishi Sunak acknowledged concerns over the rising cost of living, but cheered “a year of falling unemployment and a stronger jobs market bounce-back than so many predicted”.
