LONDON, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- Britain's unemployment rate for people aged 16 and over was estimated at 5.1 percent in September to November 2025, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed Tuesday.
The reading is unchanged from the estimate for the August-October period, but is above those of the previous quarter and a year ago, according to the ONS.
Annual growth in employees' average total earnings, including bonuses, stood at 4.7 percent in the September-November period. In real terms, adjusted for consumer price index (CPI) inflation, earnings grew by 1.1 percent.
The estimated number of payrolled employees fell by 155,000 between November 2024 and November 2025, and decreased by 33,000 between October 2025 and November 2025, the data showed.
"The number of employees on payroll has fallen again, with reductions over the last year concentrated in retail and hospitality, and reflecting ongoing weak hiring activity," Liz McKeown, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said, adding that wage growth in the private sector has slowed to its lowest rate in five years.
"The rate of unemployment has held steady at 5.1 percent and the number of payrolled employees has continued to fall, suggesting the labor market is still loosening," Patrick Milnes, head of People and Work Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), commented.
Wage increases, which held steady at 4.7 percent, "provide little relief for businesses who have seen eye-watering growth in employment costs, and know there is still more pain to come," he added, citing 72 percent of firms considering labor costs continue to be their main cost pressure in BCC's most recent survey. ■