Highest number of people in work since records began almost 50 years ago after figure increases by 457,000 in past year
Employment jumped by 179,000 in the three months to February to 32.7million
MORE people are in work than at any time since records began.
Employment jumped by 179,000 in the three months to February to 32.7million.
It means the figure has increased by 457,000 in the past year and is at its highest since 1971.
The rise is due to an increase in those in full-time jobs or who are self-employed.
The number of part-timers dropped by 15,000.
Employment Minister Alok Sharma welcomed the figures but said: “We must not take this for granted. We need to work urgently to get behind a Brexit deal that protects this record.”
The Office for National Statistics figures show unemployment fell by 27,000 to 1.34million.
It is at its lowest rate since 1975.
The number of economically inactive people — those out of work and not looking for a job — is also at a record low.
Meanwhile, wages rose 1.6 per cent in a year to an average £465 a week — but it is still £8 less than before the 2008 crash.
TUC leader Frances O’Grady called it “the longest pay squeeze for 200 years”.
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