Unemployment falls again in the West Midlands

The number out of work was down 8,000 on the November to January period, but up 26,000 from 12 months before.

The number employed in the region was also up by 20,000 in the period to 2.8 million.

Britain saw a record surge in the number of workers on payrolls last month as hospitality and entertainment firms hired for indoor reopening. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said there were 197,000 more people in payrolled employment last month compared with April, the highest rise since these records began in 2014.

The ONS said that, for the first time since the pandemic struck, the hardest-hit sectors such as hospitality, accommodation and arts and entertainment saw the strongest growth in payrolled workers.

It comes after indoor hospitality reopened on May 17 in a boost to cinemas, restaurants, pubs and bars, which have been battered by lengthy Covid-19 restrictions.

The West Midlands employment rate of 74.2 per cent compared to 75.2 per cent for the UK as a whole with 32.4m now in work.

The national unemployment rate was down 0.3 percentage points to 4.7 per cent with 1.61m with the West Midlands rate at 5.7 per cent.

The national total claiming unemployment benefits, including Universal Credit, last month was 2.5m – a fall of 92,600.

The West Midlands saw a fall of 11,080 claimants to 255,355 – seven per cent of the working population.

Shropshire saw a reduction of 570 to 7,815 (4.1 percent) with Telford and Wrekin down by 345 to 6,205 (5.6 per cent).

There was also a drop of 160 in Powys to 3,020 (four per cent).

Ben Vaughan, Shropshire employer adviser manager at Jobcentre Plus, said: “Shropshire continues to show strong signs of sustained economic recovery.

"Our numbers of Universal Credit claimants have continued to fall over the last four weeks at a faster rate than both nationally and the wider West Midlands zone, and our numbers of claimants aged 18-24 is now at its lowest total since May 2020.

"With many of our key local employment sectors such as leisure and tourism and hospitality and catering able to open their doors and welcome customers back into their premises, this has seen many of our jobseekers able to return to previous employment, or begin a new career, and is a cause for real optimism locally as these industries begin their busiest seasons.

"Jobcentre Plus in partnership with our employer network across the county is continuing to create new Kickstart vacancies each week, with hundreds of our local younger jobseekers already returning to employment as a result of the scheme.

"We are also committed to our jobseekers across Shropshire in partnership with our local authorities as our youth hub in Oswestry opens for business and takes its first referrals, with our hubs in Shrewsbury, Bridgnorth and Telford to follow suit in June and July.

"Jobseekers who have been unemployed for more than 12 months will also now be able to participate in the new 'Restart' scheme from June 28, ensuring support for those hardest hit by the impact of Covid-19 is available locally in Shropshire for all our jobseekers, regardless of their circumstances."

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: "Our Plan for Jobs is working – the latest forecasts for unemployment are around half of what was previously feared and the number of employees on payroll is at its highest level since April last year.

"We understand the value of work and the distress caused by unemployment – that is why we are continuing to support people and jobs.

"The furlough scheme is running all the way through until September and we are creating new routes into work through apprenticeships, Kickstart placements for young people as well as targeted support for the long-term unemployed."

Minister for Employment Mims Davies said: "There are real signs of recovery in the labour market with tens of thousands of Work Coaches working hard to support people across our growing network of Jobcentres to help build their skills, get interview ready, and find their next roles – with over three quarters of a million vacancies out there.

Sam Beckett, ONS head of economic statistics, said: "The number of employees on payroll grew strongly in May, up by almost 200,000, although it is still over half a million down since the pandemic struck.

"Job vacancies continued to recover in the spring, and our early estimates suggest that by May the total had surpassed its pre-pandemic level, with strong growth in sectors such as hospitality.

"Meanwhile the redundancy rate remains subdued, while the number of employees on furlough has continued to decline."

Job vacancies rocketed by 24 per cent quarter on quarter – up 147,000 to 758,000 between March and May, thanks to a hiring spree across these sectors amid reports of some firms resorting to financial incentives to attract workers.

Vacancies are now just 27,000 below levels seen before the pandemic, with most industries having fully recovered, according to the ONS.

Unemployment has been kept in check by the furlough scheme, with around three million people still on the wage support, which ends in September and has not been extended despite the delay to the full lifting of restrictions.

The data revealed there was also a record jump in earnings, with average pay excluding bonuses up 5.6% in the three months to April, though the ONS said this was compared with a year earlier, when there was a big fall, while many jobs axed in the pandemic have also being lower-paid roles.