The UK’s latest unemployment figures paint a disappointing picture, but some sectors have fared much better than others.
Data published by the Office for National Statistics on Tuesday (10 June) shows that the unemployment rate increased to 4.6% in the three months to the end of April 2025, up from 4.5% over the previous three-month period.
This is the highest rate of unemployment in the country since June 2021, the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The data also shows that some 276,000 jobs have been lost since Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered her last budget.
The data shows that the Retail sector has been particularly hard hit, part of a worryingly decade-long trend, says the British Retail Consortium.
According to the latest report by the ONS there were 2.76 million jobs in retail in March 2025. The four-quarter average, which smooths out the seasonal variations in hiring, was 2.80 million jobs in March 2025, 93,000 fewer than at the same point last year, and 364,000 fewer than in 2015, the group said.
On a four-quarter average, there were 1.30 million full-time and 1.50 million part-time jobs. The number of full-time jobs is down 117,000 on a decade ago. Meanwhile, the number of part-time jobs is down 246,000 over the same period.
“Retail jobs have continued to fall, with 364,000 fewer jobs than ten years ago. More jobs have been lost in retail in a decade than exist across the whole of the fishing, car manufacturing and steel-making industries combined,” said Helen Dickinson (Chief Executive at the British Retail Consortium).
And while factory closures have quickly been met by promises of action, this wave of retail jobs losses appears to go unnoticed by the government, she said.
“These new figures come days after the BRC published its 2025 Retail Jobs Report, highlighting the rising tide of employment costs hitting the retail industry. The cost of employing people for full-time entry-level roles has risen by 10%, while the cost for part-time roles has increased by a massive 13%.
“This matters: retail jobs are a vital part of the local economy right across the country. From young people taking their first step into the world of work, to parents and carers returning to the workforce around other commitments, retail has flexible and local roles for everyone. When we take retail jobs away, we do a disservice to the local communities that rely on them,” she said.
In the last ten years, almost 250,000 part-time roles have been lost. The BRC now estimates that over the next three years, 160,000 more roles could be at risk.
“The Government has a clear path to securing the future of these flexible and local jobs. It must ensure the Employment Rights Bill tackles unscrupulous employers without hampering employment opportunities offered by responsible businesses,” said Dickinson.
“This will help the industry provide routes back into work for those who need it – a win-win for employees, employers, and the wider economy.”
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