The UK unemployment rate declined to 4.3% in the three months to September 2021, the lowest since the three months to July 2020 and below market expectations of 4.4%. Still, the rate remained 0.3%age points higher than before the pandemic. The number of unemployed people was down by 152,000 to 1.45 million, while employment rose by 247,000 to 32.52 million, above expectations of a 185,000 gain. The quarterly decrease in unemployment was driven by those unemployed for up to 12 months, with those unemployed for up to 6 months decreasing to slightly below pre-pandemic levels and those unemployed for between 6 and 12 months continuing to decrease from the peak reached in early 2021. Meanwhile, long-term unemployment continues to increase. The report also showed the number of employees on company books rose by 160,000 to a record 29.3 million in October, the first month after the end of the government's job-protecting furlough scheme, while job vacancies hit a new record of 1.172 million. source: Office for National Statistics

Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom averaged 6.83 percent from 1971 until 2021, reaching an all time high of 11.90 percent in April of 1984 and a record low of 3.40 percent in December of 1973. This page provides the latest reported value for - United Kingdom Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news. United Kingdom Unemployment Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on December of 2021.

Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom is expected to be 4.20 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the United Kingdom Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 4.00 percent in 2022 and 3.90 percent in 2023, according to our econometric models.

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United Kingdom Unemployment Rate


Calendar GMT Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2021-10-12 06:00 AM Aug 4.5% 4.6% 4.5% 4.6%
2021-11-16 07:00 AM Sep 4.3% 4.5% 4.4% 4.5%
2021-12-14 07:00 AM Oct 4.3% 4.2%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Unemployment Rate 4.30 4.50 percent Sep/21
Unemployed Persons 2063.10 2078.00 Thousand Oct/21
Employed Persons 32523.00 32416.00 Thousand Aug/21
Full Time Employment 24500.00 24440.00 Thousand Aug/21
Part Time Employment 8024.00 7976.00 Thousand Aug/21
Claimant Count Change -14.90 -51.10 Thousand Oct/21
Employment Rate 75.40 75.30 percent Aug/21
Labor Force Participation Rate 78.90 78.90 percent Aug/21
Youth Unemployment Rate 11.70 12.20 percent Aug/21
Labour Costs 107.30 110.10 points Jun/21
Productivity 101.70 101.60 points Jun/21
Job Vacancies 1172.00 1108.00 Thousand Sep/21
Wages 584.00 582.00 GBP/Week Sep/21
Wages in Manufacturing 638.00 639.00 GBP/Week Sep/21
Wage Growth 5.80 7.20 percent Sep/21
Population 67.20 66.80 Million Dec/20
Non Farm Payrolls 29180.00 28973.00 Thousand Sep/21
Employment Change 247.00 235.00 Thousand Aug/21
Average Weekly Hours 31.60 31.50 Hours Aug/21

News Stream
UK Jobless Rate Lower than Forecasts
The UK unemployment rate declined to 4.3% in the three months to September 2021, the lowest since the three months to July 2020 and below market expectations of 4.4%. Still, the rate remained 0.3%age points higher than before the pandemic. The number of unemployed people was down by 152,000 to 1.45 million, while employment rose by 247,000 to 32.52 million, above expectations of a 185,000 gain. The quarterly decrease in unemployment was driven by those unemployed for up to 12 months, with those unemployed for up to 6 months decreasing to slightly below pre-pandemic levels and those unemployed for between 6 and 12 months continuing to decrease from the peak reached in early 2021. Meanwhile, long-term unemployment continues to increase. The report also showed the number of employees on company books rose by 160,000 to a record 29.3 million in October, the first month after the end of the government's job-protecting furlough scheme, while job vacancies hit a new record of 1.172 million.
2021-11-16
UK Jobless Rate at Fresh 1-Year Low
The UK unemployment rate declined further to 4.5 percent in the three months to August 2021, the lowest in a year and in line with market expectations, as the labor market continued to recover. Still, the rate remained 0.5 percentage points higher than before the pandemic. The number of unemployed people was down by 126,000 on quarter to 1.51 million, while employment rose by 235,000 to 32.42 million, less than market consensus of a 243,000 increase. The report also showed the number of employees on company books rose by 207,000 to a record 29.2 million in September, while job vacancies hit an all-time high of 1.1 million, with the largest increase seen in accommodation and food service activities.
2021-10-12
UK Jobless Rate Drops to Near 1-Year Low
The UK unemployment rate fell to 4.6 percent in the three months to July 2021, the lowest level since the June-August 2020 period and in line with market expectations, adding to signs of labor market recovery. Still, the rate remained 0.6 percentage points higher than before the pandemic. The number of unemployed people was down by 86,000 on quarter to 1.55 million, while employment levels rose by 183,000 to 32.36 million, more than market consensus of a 178,000 increase. The report also showed the number of employees on company books rose by 241,000 to 29.1 million in August 2021, returning to February 2020 levels. The number of job vacancies rose above 1 million for the first time, with the largest increase seen in accommodation and food service activities.
2021-09-14

United Kingdom Unemployment Rate
In the United Kingdom, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force.