The UK’s unemployment rate edged up to 4.4% in December 2024, reflecting a continued upward trend since mid-2022, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The UK’s unemployment rate rose to 4.4% in December 2024, up from 4.3% in the previous quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The economic inactivity rate stood at 21.5%, while the employment rate also saw an increase, reaching 74.9%. As of December, the number of unemployed individuals stood at 1.56 million, while the total employed workforce amounted to 33.85 million.
The ONS highlighted that after a steady decline in unemployment since late 2013, the rate spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic. While it subsequently fell below pre-pandemic levels by mid-2022, unemployment has been on an upward trajectory since.
For context, the unemployment rate was 3.6% in mid-2022, rising to 3.9% by December 2023 and further increasing to 4.1% at the start of 2024.
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