Wales Office
Employment in Wales is at a record high as the latest snapshot of the jobs market to follow the EU referendum vote points to a Welsh economy setting the pace for the rest of the country.
Todays Labour Market statistics show the unemployment rate in Wales is lower than the whole of the UK amid a clutch of positive indicators.
Headlines from the Labour Market Statistics are:
- The employment level in Wales is up 5,000 over the quarter to 1.459 million and the rate is up 0.9 percentage points to 73.5 per cent. Over the year, the level increased by 38,000 and the rate was up 2.5 percentage points. The employment level and the employment rate are at the highest level on record
- The unemployment level is down 5,000 over the quarter to 65,000 and the rate is down by 0.3 percentage points to 4.3 per cent. Over the year, the level decreased by 25,000 and the rate was down 1.7 percentage points. The rate in Wales is now 0.6 percentage points lower than the unemployment rate for the UK as a whole, which is 4.9 per cent
- The claimant count fell by 300 (0.8 per cent) between August and September and fell 2,100 (4.7 per cent) over the year. The rate now stands at 2.9 per cent. For the UK, the claimant count increased by 700 (0.1 per cent) over the quarter but fell 15,700 (2.0 percentage points) over the year and now stands at 776,400. The UK rate is 2.3 per cent
- Economic inactivity is down 13,000 over the quarter to 441,000 and the rate is down by 0.7 percentage points to 23.1. Over the year, the level decreased by 22,000 and the rate was down 1.1 percentage points. For the UK, inactivity fell by 65,000 (0.2 percentage points) over the quarter and 231,000 (0.6 percentage points) over the year and now stands at 8.809 million. The inactivity rate for the UK now stands at 21.5 per cent
Alun Cairns, Secretary of State for Wales, said:
These figures are the latest glimpse of the jobs market in Wales post-EU referendum vote and they suggest the Welsh economy continues to power ahead.
Welsh businesses and entrepreneurs are clearly getting on with what they do best - creating jobs and selling their expertise across the world.
The record employment rate in Wales is testament to our outstanding companies buoyed by the long-term effects of welfare reform which means it pays to be in work.