AROUND 20 unemployed workers are chasing every job vacancy in poorer parts of the UK, with that number rising to 50 in the areas worst affected by coronavirus, a study shows.
The Institute for Employment Studies (IES) said ex-industrial and inner city areas like Broxtowe in East Midlands and Brent in London were hardest hit.
In wealthier areas, there were five people out of work for each vacancy.
The government said it had supported the economy with unprecedented action.
But economists warn unemployment could leap this year as businesses come out of the furlough and sack thousands of workers.
This week, official jobs data showed the number of workers on UK payrolls fell by more than 600,000 between March and May.
The IES found that as many as 50 people were chasing every job in 11 local authorities.
By contrast, there were 12 more affluent local authorities with as few as three claimants per vacancy, including Kensington and Chelsea in London, Chichester, and Warwick.
IES director Tony Wilson said: ‘Many of these areas were struggling before this crisis began and are in even more trouble now.’
A swathe of businesses have announced job cuts as the economy has contracted sharply due to the pandemic, opting not to furlough those workers instead.
The firms cutting jobs include:
- The Restaurant Group, which owns Frankie and Benny’s, expects to cut up to 3,000 workers.
- The UK’s biggest builders’ merchant, Travis Perkins, plans to cut about 2,500 jobs, or 9% of its workforce.
- British Airways, expects to cut 12,000 jobs.
• And jet engine-maker Rolls-Royce is cutting 9,000 jobs, mainly in the UK.
