Feature

Who Works

Data Office for National Statistics
Covers Labour Force Survey and Vacancy Survey, UK
Updated the latest period

Fifty years of work, worklessness and unfilled jobs, from the official surveys.

Fifty years in one line

Employment and economic inactivity rates of people aged 16 to 64. Labour Force Survey, UK, seasonally adjusted, rolling three-month periods; the chart shows every third period, so no two points overlap. Estimates before 1992 are modelled from earlier surveys. The LFS is official statistics, not accredited: ONS says short-term changes, especially from mid-2023 to 2024, should be read with caution.

Share of people aged 16 to 64 in work and economically inactive, UK

Women in, men down

Employment rate of men and of women aged 16 to 64, UK, seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey, with the same caveats: modelled before 1992, and recent short-term changes uncertain.

Employment rate of men and women aged 16 to 64, UK

Out of work, not looking

Economically inactive means neither in work nor looking for and available to start work. The reason is the main one people give. People aged 16 to 64, UK, seasonally adjusted, from 1993. Labour Force Survey: read recent short-term changes with caution.

People aged 16 to 64 economically inactive, by main reason, UK

Young and out of work

Unemployment is a share of the economically active (in work or looking for work), not of everyone in the age group. Young people in full-time education count if they are looking for work. Labour Force Survey, UK, seasonally adjusted; the 16 to 24 series starts in 1992.

Unemployment rate, 16 to 24 and all 16 and over, UK

Unfilled jobs

ONS Vacancy Survey of businesses, UK, rolling three-month periods, rounded to the nearest thousand. Leaves out agriculture, forestry and fishing, households and employment agencies. The latest period is provisional. The job openings rate is a new ONS measure from September 2026. Vacancies are not jobs filled, and say nothing about who fills them. Industries with very few vacancies get levels only, no percentage change.