Unemployment down in quarter to September, ONS says

Small businesses could be among those increasing their hiring programmes after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that unemployment fell by 49,000 to 2.51 million in the three months to September.

This, according to the figures, shows that the jobless rate fell by 0.1 per cent to 7.8 per cent across the quarter as companies continued to recruit new members of staff.

However, problems still exist in the labour market and critics have pointed to a rising claimant count - up 10,100 in September - as a sign that the government still has plenty of work to do.

Chris Williamson, Economist at economic research firm Markit, explained that difficulties still remain.

"The data add to recent signs from business surveys that growing uncertainty about the economic outlook is causing increasing numbers of firms to retrench and focus on cost cutting," he added.

However, research published by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development this week explained that hiring looks set to take place until the end of the year, providing hope that small businesses and other firms can flourish in the months to come.

Posted by Thomas Fletcher

Date published 15 Nov 2012 | Last updated 15 Nov 2012