458,000 young people aged 16-24 were unemployed in November – January 2023, up 27,000 from the previous quarter but at a similar level to a year before. Youth unemployment is currently at a historically low level. The lowest level of youth unemployment since records began in 1992 was in June-August 2022, when there were 372,000 unemployed young people.
The unemployment rate (the proportion of the economically active population who are unemployed) for 16–24 year olds was 10.8%. This is up from 10.5% in the previous quarter but down from 11.2% the year before.
The number of young people in employment in November – January 2023 had increased by 86,000 compared to the previous quarter. The number of young people in employment in November – January 2023 had increased by 89,000 to the previous year.
The number who are economically inactive (not in or looking for work) fell by 119,000 from the previous quarter and fell by 61,000 from the previous year to 2.61 million. 74% of the young people who are economically inactive are in full-time education.
The inactivity rate for young people is 38.2%, down from 39.9% in the previous quarter.
For context, it is worth noting that the total population aged 16-24 remained at a similar level in the year to November – January 2023, but it has generally been declining in recent years.
Trends in youth unemployment
After reaching a peak of 22.5% in 2011 following the 2008 financial crisis, youth unemployment rates fell until the start of the pandemic to 12.3% in January-March 2020. Youth unemployment did initially rise after the outbreak of the pandemic, with the youth unemployment rate reaching a high of 14.9% in July-September 2020. Levels of youth unemployment were 15% higher in this quarter than they were pre-pandemic.
Since then, youth unemployment has been steadily falling. There were 73,000 fewer unemployed young people in November – January 2023 compared to January-March 2020, a 14% fall. The youth unemployment rate has fallen from 12.3% to 10.8% during this period.
