UK unemployment at 4.8% in quarter to March
The unemployment rate in the United Kingdom was estimated at 4.8% in the three months to March, 0.3 percentage points down from the previous quarter but 0.8 percentage points up compared to the last trimester before the coronavirus pandemic struck the economy, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed in its report published on Tuesday.
The employment rate was estimated at 75.2%, 0.2 points higher from the previous trimester but 1.4 percentage points lower in comparison to the pre-pandemic quarter.
The rate of annual pay growth stood at 4% for total pay and at 4.6% for regular pay in the January to March 2021 quarter. In the same timeframe, the estimated economic inactivity rate increased by 0.1 percentage points on a quarterly basis and by 0.8 percentage points compared to the last trimester preceding the pandemic, reaching 21%. Meanwhile, the number of vacancies reached 657,000 in the three months to April, rising by 48,400, or 8%, compared to the previous quarter.