- Employment in the North East stands at 1,214,000 or 70.4% – an increase of 47,000 over the quarter and 28,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 74.1% nationally.
- North East unemployment stands at 107,000 or 8.1% – a fall of 2,000 over the quarter but a rise of 4,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 5.1% nationally.
- The claimant count stands at 47,000 or 3.9% in the North East. The national claimant count rate is 2.2%.
- The number of Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants in the North East who have been claiming for over 2 years has halved since January 2014.
Commenting on the North East labour statistics, Paul Carbert, Policy Advisor at the North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC), said:
“This is very encouraging news. We’re very pleased to see the employment rate up 2.1% over the quarter; this is the largest rise in the country for the second month running.
“Although unemployment has decreased it still remains high compared to the rest of the UK. The number of people in our region aged 16-64 who are classed as economically active has risen over the quarter. This may be due to people re-entering the labour market after being on long-term sick or caring for a relative and have not yet found work.
“Nevertheless, long term unemployment is falling so the North East is definitely heading in the right direction.”
Companies who are reporting growth and have confirmed recent appointments include NECC members Billingham-based business Nicholson’s Transport and Teesside workwear provider M.I. Supplies.
Alex Ingham , Managing Director of M.I. supplies has noticed increased confidence which is reflected in his recruitment. Mr Ingham said: “We’ve welcomed several new members of staff into our team recently and will be recruiting further this year. The demand from our customers has increased and alongside that so has our workforce. Growth and employment go hand in hand and we’re excited to be able to expand our team and improve our service even further.”