Employment and employee types

Employment rates show the number of people in paid work as a proportion of the population, broken down by age and sex. Includes information on the number of people in employment and vacancies.

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Employment rate (aged 16 to 64, seasonally adjusted): %

UK: Aged 16-64

75.9 %

2023 JAN-MAR

Release date:: 16 May 2023
Next release:: 13 June 2023

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Labour market overview, UK: May 2023

What's in the bulletin?

The UK employment rate was estimated at 75.9% in January to March 2023, 0.2 percentage points higher than October to December 2022. The increase in employment over the latest three-month period was driven by part-time employees and self-employed workers.
The more timely estimate of payrolled employees for April 2023 shows a monthly decrease, down 136,000 on the revised March 2023 figures, to 29.8 million. This is the first fall in total payrolled employees since the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, though this should be treated as a provisional estimate and is likely to be revised when more data are received next month.
The unemployment rate for January to March 2023 increased by 0.1 percentage points on the quarter to 3.9%. The increase in unemployment was driven by people unemployed for over 12 months.

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UK economy latest

A roundup of the latest data and trends on the economy, business and jobs

Time series related to Employment and employee types

Employment rate (aged 16 to 64, seasonally adjusted): %

UK: Aged 16-64

75.9 % 2023 JAN-MAR

Release date:

16 May 2023

Next release:

13 June 2023
Number of People in Employment (aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted):000s

UK: Aged 16 and over

32,995 000's 2023 JAN-MAR

Release date:

16 May 2023

Next release:

13 June 2023
Female employment rate (aged 16 to 64, seasonally adjusted): %

UK: Aged 16-64

72.3 % 2023 JAN-MAR

Release date:

16 May 2023

Next release:

13 June 2023
Male employment rate (aged 16 to 64, seasonally adjusted): %

UK: Aged 16-64

79.5 % 2023 JAN-MAR

Release date:

16 May 2023

Next release:

13 June 2023
UK Job Vacancies (thousands) - Total Services

958 2023 FEB-APR

Release date:

16 May 2023

Next release:

13 June 2023

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Datasets related to Employment and employee types

A01: Summary of labour market statistics

Labour market statistics summary data table, including earnings, employment, unemployment, redundancies and vacancies, Great Britain and UK, published monthly.
EMP13: Employment by industry

Employment by industry and sex, UK, published quarterly, non-seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey.
EMP04: Employment by occupation

This dataset has now been discontinued following a user consultation. However figures for employment by occupation, sourced from our Annual Population Survey are available on our NOMIS website.
A08: Labour market status of disabled people

Labour market status of disabled people, UK, published quarterly, non-seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey.
EMP06: Employment by country of birth and nationality

Employment levels and rates by country of birth and nationality, UK, published quarterly, non-seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey.
EMP13: Employment by industry

Employment by industry and sex, UK, published quarterly, non-seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey.

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Publications related to Employment and employee types

Statistical bulletins

Labour market overview, UK: May 2023

Estimates of employment, unemployment, economic inactivity and other employment-related statistics for the UK.
Labour market in the regions of the UK: May 2023

Regional, local authority and parliamentary constituency breakdowns of changes in UK employment, unemployment, economic inactivity and other related statistics.
Employment in the UK: May 2023

Estimates of employment, unemployment and economic inactivity for the UK.
Vacancies and jobs in the UK: May 2023

Estimates of the number of vacancies and jobs for the UK.
Working and workless households in the UK: January to March 2023

The economic status of households in the UK and the people living in them, where at least one person is aged 16 to 64 years. Taken from the Labour Force Survey.
Employees in the UK: provisional results 2021

Number of employees in the UK, full-time and part-time, by sector, industry, country and English region, from the Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES).

View all related statistical bulletins

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An overview of self-employment across the UK, looking at the industrial, occupational, geographic and demographic characteristics of those who are self-employed.
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Discover differences between the commuting habits of men and women across the UK.
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Analysis of the jobs and earnings of young non-graduates working in the UK.