Last week’s unemployment figures made depressing reading for everybody, including umbrella company contractors.
Data from the Office for National Statistics showed that 2.62 million people were unemployed in the third quarter of this year. Youth unemployment is a matter of grave concern, with the figures showing that 1.016 million young people are now without a job.
Kevin Green, the chief executive of the REC, was clearly distressed with the youth unemployment figures and said the government needs to take urgent action to rectify the situation.
He reiterated his calls for a National Insurance holiday for small businesses that hire young people. Furthermore he urged businesses and recruitment experts to raise awareness and create better avenues into work.
Government policy must revolve around jobs and growth, he continued, and George Osborne’s Autumn Statement later this month must kick-start the process. The government must start taking real action – just talking about it is no longer good enough.
Will rising unemployment be enough of a deterrent to stop workers looking for pastures new? According to a study by Train4TradeSkills, more than 25% of workers are dissatisfied with their current position and the majority of them intend to make a career change within the next five years.
Top of the dissatisfaction table comes people working in the retail sector. With only 14% saying they are very satisfied in their job. People in the leisure and hospitality sector are the most satisfied, but at only 27% the percentage is still not high.
Interestingly, 46% of the employees questioned for the survey said they wanted to be their own boss. With unemployment continuing to rise, self-employment may be the only option available to the UK’s dissatisfied workforce.
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Image: Looming Dark by Orin Zebest
