NORTH East Chamber of Commerce (NECC) response to today’s labour market estimates.
- Employment in the North East stands at 1,186,000 or 69.3% – a fall of 3,000 over the quarter but a rise of 17,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 73.4% nationally.
- North East unemployment stands at 95,000 or 7.4% – a fall of 5,000 over the quarter and 31,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 5.5% nationally.
- The claimant count stands at 46,400 or 3.8% in the North East, compared to 2.3% nationally.
Jonathan Walker, Head of Policy and Campaigns, North East Chamber of Commerce, says:
“When comparing today’s figures with those over the last 12 months, the North East is still making remarkable progress in reducing unemployment and increasing the number of people in work.
“Although these numbers represent a slight softening in the improvements in the labour market we’ve seen recently, it is positive that the North East continues to reduce unemployment at a faster rate than the UK average.
“These numbers come at a time when we’re increasingly hearing that businesses are facing skills shortages and are struggling to hire the right people but today’s figures suggest there are still talented people available in the North East’s labour market.
“Nevertheless, we shouldn’t get complacent. These improvements can only be sustained for so long before we face a real skills crisis in some sectors. We must continue to build a dialogue between education institutions and organisations who have the potential to welcome future apprentices and learners into their work place to experience first-hand the world of work.”