ONS latest | UK jobs market stuck in the slow lane as employers hesitate on pay rises & long-term hiring

If today’s labour market figures feel familiar, that’s because they are. The latest ONS data shows a jobs market that is neither falling off a cliff nor gathering much momentum, with unemployment still elevated, vacancies only inching up, and employers continuing to tread carefully on permanent hiring. 

Against a backdrop of rising costs and new employment regulation, many organisations appear to be pressing pause rather than pushing ahead.

The employment rate for people aged 16 to 64 was estimated at 75.1% in the three months to November 2025. Unemployment was 5.1%, unchanged in the latest quarter but above year-ago levels. 

Economic inactivity for the core working age population was 20.8%, slightly down on the quarter. Early estimates show a small increase in vacancies of around 10,000 to roughly 734,000. Payrolled employee counts based on HMRC data showed a fall of 155,000 jobs over the year and a monthly decrease of 33,000. Wage growth softened, with regular average earnings up 4.5% on the year.