New labour market statistics have shown that the level of unemployment in the UK stands at 8.1 per cent, as of 12 October 2011. This figure is constantly on the rise, as we see in the news week in week out, and has risen by approximately 113,000 people to 2.57 million since this time last year. It is fair to say that the job market has seen happier times.
The recession is affecting people of all age groups as experienced workers get made redundant and fresh graduates struggle to find work all over the country. Universities are receiving more applications every year, which is resulting in a greater number of graduate job seekers in the same pool of jobs. The average number of applications per position this year has been 83, which, compared to 69 last year and just 49 in 2009, is a rather alarming number.
The BBC, however, reported in June that graduate jobs were set to rise by 2.6 per cent in 2011, which at least shines a brighter light on the jobs market for the time being, but the number of graduates is still rising at a higher rate. The possibility of university fees hitting £9,000 a year is expected to rather unjustly bring the numbers down over the next few years.
John Philpott, the Chief Economic Adviser of CIPD, commented on the new labour market statistics on unemployment, saying: "These labour market figures are truly horrific, with the economy shedding almost 15,000 jobs each week between June and August. The quarterly rise in unemployment is reminiscent of an economy in recession rather than any kind of recovery and confirms that the private sector just isn’t creating enough jobs at present to offset public sector job cuts.
"With 5.6 unemployed people for every job vacancy the labour market is back to where it was in the depths of recession in 2009 and the underlying problem is getting even worse given that 1 in 3 unemployed people have now been without work for over a year. Many more months like this and we’re likely to see the re-emergence of the kind of ‘Gissa Job’ economy that scarred Britain in the 1980s and 1990s.
"As the CIPD expected, youth unemployment didn’t rise by the 85,000 figure required to take the total above 1 million by the end of August. However, given the background deterioration in the labour market we now expect that milestone to be reached next month."
As the recession continues to bite, jobs are ever more difficult to come by but there are some jobs that are, to some extent, almost recession-proof. Programming jobs, logo design jobs and writing jobs are increasingly common in both the permanent and freelance working worlds. The world is becoming more and more reliant on technology and digital media, so there will always be a requirement for these kinds of work.
Freelance work is a great way to escape the recession, as long as you choose the right avenue. Design work and writing are always in demand, so there are few better ways to keep your chin up and the money coming in while the recession is ridden out.