(Office for National Statistics) UK recorded 29.1 million total number of payroll employees in August, an increase of 241,000 from the previous month.
The uptick in payroll numbers helped the economy return to the pre-pandemic levels of February 2020. Only London, Scotland, and the South East are below the pre-pandemic levels.
In the three months to August, UK businesses posted more than 1 million vacancies, a record high, with the unemployment rate down by 0.3% to 4.6% in the three months to July.
Total pay expanded by 8.3% in the quarter to July, while regular pay, that excludes bonuses, was up 6.8%.
The economic inactivity rate shed 0.3% to 21.1% in the May to July quarter from the previous quarter. Total number of people in employment, including the self-employed, was 32.4 million, up 183,000 in the same period.
The payroll numbers come when Britain prepares to terminate its furlough programme on September 30, which was supporting about 700,000 workers as of last month.
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