UK unemployment rate rises to 4.2%; Wages up 6%

The UK's unemployment rate rose by 4.2%, official data revealed on Tuesday, with the number of people classed as "economically inactive" on the rise while employers started to cut back on hirings.

Unemployment total rose by 85,000 in the three months to February to 1.44 million, taking the jobless rate to its highest level since the summer of 2023. The number of people in employment fell by 156,000 in the quarter to 32.98 million.

A further 150,000 people were classed as economically inactive in the quarter, taking the number neither in work nor looking for a job to 9.404 million, while the number of payrolled employees shrank in March by 67,000, to 30.3 million.

In a separate announcement regular wages excluding bonuses grew by 6.0% in the same period year on year, down from a 6.1% rise in the November-to-January period the Office for National Statistics said.

Employer lobby group the Institute of Directors said the rise in economic inactivity over both the quarter and the year "is a worrying development for businesses, given its potential to exacerbate persistent skills and labour shortages in the UK".

"The ongoing expansion of government-funded childcare is a welcome step to increasing labour market participation, but more action from government is urgently needed to increase domestic labour supply," it added.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com