Dundee has a lower percentage of people in work than any other major city in the UK, a new study has revealed.
Figures from the Cities Outlook 2015 show that almost 10,000 people would have to find work in the city to bring its employment rate in line with the national average.
Just 61.9% of Dundonians are in work, according to the study, which also highlights faltering business growth and the high number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance.
The City of Discovery also has one of the lowest proportions of private sector jobs in the country, despite more than 40% of Dundonians having high-level qualifications.
Labour group leader Kevin Keenan said he was disappointed the SNP administration had not done more to bring jobs to the city.
He said: “The SNP in Dundee has been slow to react to the ‘city deals’ available from the UK Government.
“Other cities such as Glasgow have been hugely successful by doing that.
“But the only game in town right now is the V&A and, given what we’ve heard recently about how much it is going to cost, seems a huge gamble.
“We would like to work together with the administration, as well as other groups such as the Chamber of Commerce, to look towards bringing jobs to the city.”
The Cities Outlook 2015 report, which is produced by the Centre for Cities, said: “High employment rates, low unemployment rates and strong jobs growth point to well-functioning labour markets, with the demand for workers amongst employers being high.
“Low employment rates, high unemployment and weak jobs growth suggest weak labour markets.
“Dundee, which had the lowest employment rate of 61.9% 10 percentage points below the national average would need 9,510 of its residents to find jobs to bring the city in line with the national average.”
The report also claims that Dundee has the lowest housing stock growth of any major city in the UK.
Despite that limited supply, house prices in Dundee are also falling, the report claims, with a home in the city fetching an average of £126,500 in 2014.
In contrast, the average price for a home in Cambridge is £412,600, while in London the average sale price is £501,500.
Council leader Ken Guild said: “The city council and its partners continue to work hard to increase employment opportunities across a number of different sectors in the city.
“The most recent figures show that 91.3% of school leavers have entered higher education, further education, employment or training. Every effort is being made to maintain and, where possible, improve this positive performance.
“The city council is providing opportunities for young people through our support for the modern apprentices programme and also in trade apprenticeships.”