19 Jan 2000
International Labour Organisation (ILO) Unemployment
Seasonally adjusted ILO unemployment in Scotland fell by 1,000 over the quarter to September-November 1999 to 175,000. The ILO unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.1 per cent. Compared with the equivalent period one year earlier, ILO unemployment was 18,000 lower and the rate was down by 0.6 percentage points.
Claimant Count Unemployment
Scotland's claimant count rate of unemployment, based on the seasonally adjusted number of people claiming benefit, fell by 1,900 in December to 122,800. The claimant count unemployment rate fell from 5.1 per cent to 5.0 per cent. Claimant count unemployment was down 11,900 over the year as a whole.
Monthly claimant count figures (not seasonally adjusted) for the New Deal groups show that the number of 18-24 year olds unemployed over 6 months fell by 3,700 over the year to December 1999 to 4,100. The number of people aged 25 and over unemployed for over 2 years fell by 1,500 to 12,000 over the same period.
Employment
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) indicates that the number of people in employment rose by 12,000 in September-November 1999 compared with the previous three months. Employment was down by 12,000 compared with the same period a year ago.
Jobcentre Vacancies
The seasonally adjusted level of vacancies notified to job centres in Scotland rose by 700 between November and December 1999 to 27,100, and was 2,100 higher compared with the same period a year ago.
Commenting on the figures, Secretary of State for Scotland, John Reid said:
"The latest statistics provide further confirmation that the Government is succeeding in the creation of a healthy labour market in Scotland. Claimant count unemployment has fallen to another historical low of 5.0 per cent, the lowest rate since March
1976, and ILO unemployment fell by 18,000 over the year as a whole."I am also pleased to note that the number of Jobcentre vacancies has increased both month on month and year on year, and that employment has risen in the last quarter.
"The Government's aim is to enable everyone who has the potential to do so to take up the jobs that are available and I am pleased to see that there have been further falls in unemployment in the New Deal groups. Today's figures provide evidence that Scotland is benefiting from the Government's economic policy and welfare reforms as policies to move people from welfare into work and to make work pay take effect.
"However there is no room for complacency and the effort to create more jobs remains a top priority."
NOTES FOR NEWS EDITORS
1. The internationally comparable International Labour Organisation (ILO) measure of unemployment is the headline figure published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for UK region countries.
2. The ILO measure of unemployment, which is derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS), is published 12 times a year for an average of the three preceding consecutive months. ONS recommend that seasonally adjusted data should be compared with the previous non-overlapping three month period: i.e. September-November data should be compared with June-August data. Quarter to quarter changes at country
regional level are particularly subject to sampling variability and should be interpreted in the context of changes over several quarters.