UK unemployment falls during first quarter
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The number of unemployed people in the UK fell by 51,000 in the first quarter of 2012 due to increased demand from the private sector, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Figures published by the Office for National Statistics reveals that unemployment dropped by 0.2% to 8.2% in the three months ending April 30, with 2.6m people in the UK out of work.
The private sector employed added an extra 205,000 people to its payrolls but these gains were hampered by almost 40,000 jobs disappearing from the public sector.
Employment in the public sector fell by 39,000 to reach 5.9m in the first quarter – the lowest figure since March 2003.
While the unemployment rate for men fell by 0.3%, the rate for women remained unchanged. Unemployment among men is now at its lowest rate since mid-2011 while, for women, the unchanged rate is the highest it has been in at least two years.
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