STUC on October unemployment figures

November 10th 2020

STUC on October unemployment figures

November 10th 2020

The number of people on payrolls is down by more than 70,000 (3.1%) on October last year.

Tens of thousands of furloughed Scottish workers have now been paid below minimum wage levels for over 6 months

Number of 16 to 24-year-olds in employment across the UK has decreased by 174,000 to a record low of 3.5m

Commenting on the latest unemployment figures, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer said:

“Whilst there may be some relief that unemployment levels in Scotland stayed steady for a third month in a row, the headline figures conceal some very worrying trends

“As we predicted, the lateness of the U-turn from Rishi Sunak on the Furlough scheme has cost jobs. This, despite unions across Scotland successfully supporting workers in an eleventh-hour dash to convince employers in sectors such as hospitality to reverse redundancy decisions.

“Even where we have managed to maintain employment, thousands of furloughed workers across Scotland are have now spent more than 6 months on below Minimum Wage pay, a situation that it totally unsustainable.

“The continued fall in youth employment is a deeply worrying trend. Despite our general welcome for the Scottish Government’s Youth Guarantee, we are calling for a more comprehensive fully funded Jobs Guarantee Scheme across the whole of the UK as advocated by the Alliance For Full Employment. Only through the upscaling of Kickstart and the Youth Guarantee will we be able to provide the decent jobs young people need and deserve.”