Latest figures show a softening in London’s labour market.

London’s employment rate (i.e. the proportion of London’s resident working age population in employment) in the three months to May 2015 slightly decreased to 71.7 per cent – down by 0.4 percentage points on the previous quarter, although there was no change on the year. Workforce jobs (i.e. the number of jobs located in London, whether or not they are taken by residents of London), which were not updated this month, reached 5.620 million in Q1 2015 – a new high since the measure began in 1996. This was an increase of 22,000 (or 0.4 per cent) on the previous quarter – driven by increases in employee jobs, up by 1.1 per cent on the quarter, and of 160,000 (or 2.9 per cent) over the year– accounting for 26.1 per cent of the UK total increase.

London’s ILO unemployment rate in the three months to May 2015 was 6.7 per cent. This is up 0.5 percentage points on the previous quarter but down 0.7 percentage points on the year. The timelier claimant count also showed a slight increase in the numbers claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance or out-of-work Universal Credit in June 2015; however, the rate remains unchanged from the previous month at 2.0 per cent (and down 0.6 percentage points on the year). London’s economic inactivity rate (the proportion of working age population who are not seeking or able to start work) remained unchanged as compared to the first quarter of 2015, and it is down by 0.6 percentage points on the year.

*All figures are seasonally adjusted. Rates are based on working age (16 – 64 male and female), with the exception of unemployment rate which is age 16 and above.

** Since June 2015, the labour market release headline measure of the Claimant Count includes some claimants of Universal Credit as well as JSA claimants. These Universal Credit estimates are still being developed by the Department for Work and Pensions. The ONS have therefore decided that the Claimant Count estimates including Universal Credit will continue to be designated as experimental statistics even though they are now the headline measure. A consistent series on this basis is currently available only back to November 2013.