Recession throws 1.3 million out of work

Recession throws 1.3million out of work – double the official toll

The true scale of Britain’s growing number of jobless is much worse than official figures show, research reveals today.

Around 1.3million people have lost their jobs since the start of the downturn, more than double the figure preferred by the Government.

And the research for the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development showed that those who do find a job are likely to take huge pay cuts.

Two thirds of those who overcame redundancy were paid an average of 28 per cent less by their new employer.

There were 6.2 million fresh claims for Jobseeker’s Allowance between April 2008 and November 2009 – 7.5 times the rise in the unemployment claimant count during the recession.

The disparity highlights the degree to which many were struggling to find permanent jobs, said the report.

The research also revealed that 1.3million were made redundant during the recession – double the 600,000 figure ministers like to use, which represents the net fall in employment.

The net fall figure simply measures the number of jobs which ceased to exist. It glosses over the fact that 700,000 people went through the trauma of redundancy but quickly found new work.

With official figures due this week likely to show the UK economy is growing again, the CIPD says the overall impact of the recession on the UK workforce has been much deeper than the headline unemployment figures indicate.

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show unemployment was down 7,000 between September and November to 2.46million, the first quarterly fall for 18 months.

The CIPD said the difference between its figures and those of the Government highlights the fact that many were struggling to find permanent work.

Dr John Philpott, the CIPD’s chief economic adviser said: ‘Although the scale of job loss in the recession is much less than originally feared… it is evident that the direct experience of redundancy, repeat spells of unemployment and pay penalties has nonetheless been widespread.’

Government employment spokesman Jim Knight said: ‘What the figures in the report highlight is that thousands have found work very quickly through Jobcentres, with 70 per cent of people leaving unemployment benefit within six months.

‘As a result there are 450,000 fewer people currently unemployed than predicted in the last budget.’