The unemployment rate rose to 3.8% in the three months ending in February in the United Kingdom, compared to 3.7% in the previous three months, due in particular to a drop in the inactivity rate, it indicated on Tuesday the National Statistics Office (ONS). ). It is the first rise in the unemployment rate in the three months to October, according to this monthly report from the ONS.
People who have been looking for work for more than six months have largely contributed to the increase in the unemployment rate, says the ONS, at a time when the United Kingdom flirts with recession.
Strikes reduce the number of days worked
Darren Morgan, ONS director of economic statistics, notes that “the number of working days lost to strikes rebounded in February after falling in January, but not to the levels seen before Christmas.” The United Kingdom has been shaken for months by a series of social movements in various sectors, from health to education, through transport, post and civil service, to demand wage increases in the face of inflation of more than 10%.
Wages continue to grow, but less than prices and therefore purchasing power continues to decline, says Darren Morgan.
Source: BFM TV
