YOUTH unemployment increased by 15,000 during the three months to June, reaching 973,000.
‘The coalition is making life hell for youth and it must be brought down,’ said a statement from the Young Socialists yesterday.
The number of people out of work for more than two years rose by 10,000 to 474,000, the highest number in 16 years.
However, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures released yesterday, UK unemployment fell by a tiny 4,000 in the three month period, leaving 2.51 million out of work, while the number of people successfully claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance in July fell by 29,000 to 1.4 million.
The unemployment rate remains at 7.8%.
‘Today’s small drop in unemployment rates masks the damaging growth of under-employment plaguing the country and stifling economic recovery,’ warned Dave Prentis, General Secretary of Unison.
He went on: ‘A toxic combination of a part-time, minimum wage, zero-hours working is spreading across the country, as decently paid, full-time opportunities become increasingly rare.
‘We know that just a few months ago there were, on average, almost four people chasing every vacant job in England, Scotland and Wales.
‘And some areas were worse hit than others. For young people desperate to get their first job, these are desperate times. Getting the work experience they need to get a start in life is hard to find.
‘The government needs to wake up to the damage that its cuts and austerity politics are causing – blighting the future of a whole generation and damaging the long-term social stability of the country.’
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: ‘Today’s figures show that it’s boom time again for the super-rich, while the dole queues are getting longer for young people.
‘The bounce in bonus-led pay rises shows that the super-rich have taken full advantage of the Chancellor’s telegraphed tax cut.
‘Meanwhile ordinary workers are struggling on as the cost of living increases three times faster than wages.’
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: ‘One million workers are on miserable zero-hours contracts that put people into grinding financial limbo, unable to plan for their week let alone their future.
‘Living standards for millions are falling dramatically as energy, food and transport costs soar and wages lag way behind inflation.’