Staff of Reuters Read for 2 minutes (Adds details and background) (Reuters) – LONDON, July 15 (Reuters) – According to tax data released on Thursday, the number of employees on British corporate payrolls increased by 356,000 in June from May, the largest increase since the start of the coronavirus epidemic, as the economy recovered from its coronavirus lockdowns. The increase was fueled by a 94,000 increase in jobs in lodging and food services, which were hard hit by lockdowns that have since been lifted, and a 72,000 increase in jobs in administration and support services. According to the Office for National Statistics, the headline unemployment rate increased to 4.8 percent in the three months ending in May. The unemployment rate was predicted to stay at 4.7 percent in the three months to April, according to economists polled by Reuters. The numbers released on Thursday also showed the strongest headline wage increase in the year to May since records began in 2000, albeit comparisons were distorted by higher job losses among low-income workers and a comparison to falling salaries a year ago. In the three months leading up to the end of May, average weekly wages increased by 7.3 percent over the previous year. Without the pandemic’s distortions, the ONS estimated underlying pay growth to be between 3.9 percent and 5.1 percent for average weekly earnings and between 3.2 percent and 4.4 percent for average earnings minus bonuses. (William Schomberg and David Milliken contributed reporting.)/n
Read More
