File photo dated 16/09/14 of the entrance to a Jobcentre Plus near Westferry in East London, as the Prime Minister vowed to end youth unemployment in the next Parliament as the Tories set out details of the welfare squeeze that will pay for their plan to create millions of new apprenticeships. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Monday October 20, 2014. An extra 40,000 households will be hit as the benefits cap is reduced from £26,000 to £23,000 under the policy, saving £135 million a year. See PA story POLITICS Benefits. Photo credit should read: Philip Toscano/PA Wire
The number of Scots in employment has risen by 53,000 over the last year – the equivalent of more than 1,000 people a week finding work.
While official statistics showed there had been a slight increase in the jobless total over the the period February to April, the number of people in work was up by 14,000 over the three months.
Employment has risen to 2,624,000, with almost three quarters (74.4%) of the Scottish population in work.
While the employment rate north of the border is higher than the figure of 73.4% for the UK as a whole, Scotland has a higher rate of unemployment, with 5.9% of people out of work compared to 5.5% across the UK.
The number of Scots who are out of work, including those not eligible for benefits, rose by 1,000 over February to April to stand at 163,000.
Across the UK as a whole the jobless total fell by 43,000 over the period to 1.81 million, but the number of Scots who are out of work is 19,000 lower than the same quarter last year.
Meanwhile, the number of people in Scotland who are not working and claiming jobseeker’s allowance fell by 1,200 last month to 76,300 – a drop of 23,900 from May 2014.
