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<html><head></head><body><h1 class="padding-bottom--0 padding-top--0 margin-top--2 font-weight-700 margin-bottom--2 ">Labour market overview, UK: October 2026</h1><p class="page-bulletins--Summary margin-right-md--2 margin-bottom--3 padding-bottom--0 padding-top--0">


                            Estimates of employment, unemployment, economic inactivity, and other employment-related statistics for the UK.

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                <span class="font-weight-700">Release date: </span><br>20 October 2026<br>

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    </p><p><a>Average weekly earnings in Great Britain</a></p><p><a>Earnings and employment from Pay As You Earn Real Time Information, UK</a></p><p><a>Employment in the UK</a></p><p><a>Labour market in the regions of the UK</a></p><p><a>Vacancies and jobs in the UK</a></p><p>The labour market remains broadly flat in 2026. There has been a slight increase in the employment rate, while the unemployment rate has seen a small fall, in the latest quarter. Over the same period, the number of payrolled employees has fallen, although early estimates for the latest period show little change on the month.</p><p>The number of vacancies has seen its largest fall since the start of the year. This is mainly from smaller firms, who continue to suggest that they may not be recruiting because of increased labour costs.</p><p>Regular wage growth has remained relatively stable. However, total pay is at its lowest level in nearly six years.</p><p></p><p>The embedded visualisation below may not display correctly without JavaScript enabled. <a class="underline-link">View it in full screen</a>.</p><p>Estimates for payrolled employees in the UK fell by 111,000 (0.4%) between August 2025 and August 2026, but it remained largely unchanged between July and August 2026, increasing by 1,000 (0.0%). This is based on administrative data from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).</p><p>When looking at June to August 2026, the period comparable with our Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates, the number of payrolled employees fell by 92,000 (0.3%) over the year and by 37,000 (0.1%) over the quarter.</p><p>The early estimate of payrolled employees for September 2026 decreased by 66,000 (0.2%) on the year, but remained largely unchanged between August and September 2026, increasing by 13,000 (0.0%) to 30.3 million. Figures for September should be treated as provisional estimates and are likely to be revised when more data are received next month.</p><p>The UK employment rate (based on the LFS) for people aged 16 to 64 years, including both employees and self-employed, was estimated at 75.3% for June to August 2026. This is up by 0.2 percentage points on both the year and the latest quarter.</p><p>The UK unemployment rate for people aged 16 years and over was estimated at 4.7% in June to August 2026. This is down by 0.1 percentage points on the both the year and the latest quarter.</p><p>The UK economic inactivity rate for people aged 16 to 64 years was estimated at 20.9% in June to August 2026. This is down by 0.2 percentage points on the year and down by 0.1 percentage points in the latest quarter.</p><p>The UK Claimant Count for September 2026 increased on the month and on the year to an estimated 1.701 million.</p><p>The Claimant Count figure for the latest month is provisional and is subject to revisions after first publication. This is the result of later amendments to records in the administrative systems, for example, as work capability assessments conclude and more information is available about benefit claimants' ability to work.</p><p>The estimated number of vacancies in the UK decreased in the latest quarter. Early estimates for July to September 2026 suggest a decrease of 21,000 (2.9%) to 691,000, compared with April to June 2026. This is the largest quarterly fall since January to March 2026, which was also a fall of 21,000 vacancies. </p><p>Estimates have remained broadly flat since the start of the year, decreasing by 28,000 since January to March 2026. On the year, vacancies decreased by 37,000 (5.1%).</p><p>Outside of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic period, the last time there were 691,000 or fewer vacancies was in July to September 2014, when there were 686,000 vacancies.</p><p>Feedback from our Vacancy Survey continues to suggest that smaller firms may not be recruiting because of increases in labour costs.</p><p>Annual growth in employees' average regular earnings (excluding bonuses) was 3.7% in June to August 2026 and has been relatively stable over the past six consecutive three-month periods, after a year of slowing growth.</p><p>Annual growth in total earnings (including bonuses) was 3.7% in June to August 2026, down from 3.9% on the previous three-month period. It was last lower than 3.7% in August to October 2020, when it was 2.8%.</p><p>Annual average regular earnings growth was 6.3% for the public sector and 3.0% for the private sector. Public sector annual pay growth continues to be affected by variations in the timing of pay awards this year. More information on this can be found in our <a>Average Weekly Earnings in Great Britain October 2026 bulletin</a>.</p><p>Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 0.6% for regular pay and 0.7% for total pay in June to August 2026. When using the Consumer Prices Index excluding owner occupiers' housing costs (CPI), annual growth in real terms for regular pay was 0.8%, and for total pay it was 0.9%, in June to August 2026.</p><p></p><p>Our <a>LFS quality update: October 2026 article</a> provides our most up to date assessment on the coherence of the latest estimates. </p><p>Flash estimates should be treated as provisional estimates and are likely to be revised when more data are received next month. We publish information on <a>revisions to payrolled employees</a> monthly. We have also published analysis of recent revisions in our <a>LFS quality update: January 2026 </a><a>article</a>.</p><p>We also publish RTI pay data, which provide a provisional, timelier estimate of median pay. Average weekly earnings and RTI generally trend well for mean total pay. However, there will be differences between the two data sources because of timing and definitional differences.</p><p>As part of work to address quality concerns with the LFS, response levels and rates have shown clear improvement, with responses now close to their pre-coronavirus pandemic level. The achieved sample, including imputed cases (the dataset size), has increased from 80,078 individuals in January to March 2026 to 81,193 individuals in April to June 2026, as shown in our <a>LFS performance and quality monitoring report: April to June 2026</a>.</p><p>Estimates from January to March 2025 include the full effect of the improvements in LFS data collection and sampling methods introduced from January 2024 onwards. Since then, further changes that were introduced to help increase response levels may have an ongoing impact on the survey. These include allocating more interviewers to the LFS from March 2025, which helped drive a recovery of the response levels for the LFS to close to pre-coronavirus pandemic levels in 2026. </p><p>Despite the improvement in LFS responses, some volatility remains, particularly for estimates for mid-2023 and throughout 2024, and for granular breakdowns, where sample sizes are smaller. Caution should be taken when drawing conclusions from short-term changes, and we advise users to focus on long term movements in the data.</p><p>An LFS operational issue occurred in May 2026, which led to temporary under-resourcing in LFS telephone collection operations. Our analysis indicates that the issue had a minimal impact on the headline estimates, although it does suggest there is a small but noticeable impact on the estimates of average hours and therefore the total actual hours worked. A summary of our analysis is available in our <a>LFS quality update: July 2026 article</a>.</p><p>We recommend using LFS as part of our suite of labour market indicators, alongside workforce jobs, Claimant Count and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Real Time Information (RTI) estimates.</p><p>Revisions in recent months have tended to be made downwards, as shown in our <a>LFS quality update: January 2026 article</a>. We publish information on <a>Claimant Count revisions</a> each month. Our <a>LFS quality update: April 2026 article</a> includes information on definitional differences with LFS unemployment.</p><p>In our <a>Vacancies and jobs in the UK: June 2026 bulletin</a>, we announced our intention to bring forward our annual seasonal adjustment review, and to implement the new seasonal parameters in our <a>Labour market overview, UK: September 2026 bulletin</a>. This change is in response to emerging evidence of evolving seasonal patterns.</p><p>We have completed our standard annual seasonal adjustment review, which highlighted the need for a more in-depth review of our indirect, bottom-up approach to seasonal adjustment. We require more time to undertake this in-depth review and implement any solutions required. Therefore, the estimates published in September 2026 remained on our current seasonal adjustment basis. More information on the current seasonal adjustment method can be found in our <a>Workforce jobs quality and methods guide</a>.</p><p>We have updated the presentation of this publication as part of our ongoing programme of website improvements. We will continue to make changes to future editions to improve the user experience. Please send any feedback you have to <a>[email protected]</a>.</p><p></p><p><a>Summary of labour market statistics</a><br> Dataset A01 | Released 20 October 2026<br> Labour market statistics summary data table, including earnings, employment, unemployment, redundancies and vacancies, Great Britain and UK, published monthly.</p><p><a>Earnings and employment from Pay As You Earn Real Time Information, seasonally adjusted</a><br> Dataset | Released 20 October 2026<br> Earnings and employment statistics from Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Real Time Information (RTI), UK, NUTS 1, 2 and 3 areas and local authorities, monthly, seasonally adjusted.</p><p><a>A guide to labour market data</a><br> Methodology | Last revised 18 August 2026<br> Summary of labour market datasets, providing estimates of employment, unemployment, average weekly earnings, and the number of vacancies. Tables are listed alphabetically and by topic. </p><p>View all related data on our <a>related data page</a>.</p><p>Alternatively, <a>Nomis</a> provides free access to the most detailed and up-to-date UK labour market statistics.</p><p>Average weekly earnings (AWE) are calculated using information based on the Monthly Wages and Salaries Survey (MWSS). AWE measures money paid by employers to employees in Great Britain before tax and other deductions from pay. The estimates are not just a measure of pay rises, because they also reflect, for example, changes in the overall structure of the workforce. More high-paid jobs in the economy would have an upward effect on the earnings growth rate.</p><p>People not in the labour force who are not in employment but do not meet the internationally accepted definition of unemployment. This is because they have not been seeking work within the last four weeks or they are unable to start work in the next two weeks. The economic inactivity rate is the proportion of people aged between 16 and 64 years who are not in the labour force. The Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates are <a>official statistics</a>.</p><p>Employment measures the number of people in paid work or who had a job that they were temporarily away from (for example, because they were on holiday or off sick). This differs from the number of jobs because some people have more than one job. The employment rate is the proportion of people aged between 16 and 64 years who are in employment. The LFS estimates are <a>official statistics</a>.</p><p>Unemployment measures people without a job who have been actively seeking work within the last four weeks and are available to start work within the next two weeks. The unemployment rate is not the proportion of the total population who are unemployed. It is the proportion of the economically active population (people in work and those seeking and available to work) who are unemployed. The LFS estimates are <a>official </a><a>statistics</a>.</p><p>The Claimant Count is an official statistic in development that measures the number of people who are receiving a benefit principally for the reason of being unemployed. Currently, the Claimant Count consists of those receiving Jobseeker's Allowance, and Universal Credit claimants in the "searching for work" conditionality group.</p><p>Vacancies are defined as positions for which employers are actively seeking recruits from outside their business or organisation. The estimates are based on the Vacancy Survey. This is a survey of businesses designed to provide estimates of the stock of vacancies across the economy, excluding agriculture, forestry and fishing (a small sector for which the collection of estimates would not be practical).</p><p>These data come from HM Revenue and Customs's (HMRC's) Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Real Time Information (RTI) system. They cover the whole population, rather than a sample of people or companies, and they will allow for more detailed estimates of the population.</p><p>In July 2025, the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) published a <a>letter confirming the accreditation of HMRC</a> <a>and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on earnings and employment from PAYE RTI</a>.</p><p>A more detailed glossary is available in our <a>Guide to labour market statistics methodology</a>.</p><p>The estimates presented in this bulletin contain uncertainty. For more information, see our <a>Uncertainty and how we measure it for our surveys methodology</a>.</p><p>Information on revisions is available in our <a>Labour market statistics revisions policy</a>.</p><p>Further information is available in our <a>Guide to labour market statistics methodology</a>.</p><p>On 7 June 2024, the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) introduced the new accredited official statistics badge, to denote official statistics that have been independently reviewed by the OSR. Accredited official statistics comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the <a>Code of Practice for Statistics</a>.</p><p>This UK labour market bulletin includes a combination of <a>accredited official statistics</a>, <a>official statistics</a> and <a>official statistics in development</a> (until September 2023, these were called "experimental statistics"). Read more about the change in our <a>Guide to official statistics in development</a>.</p><p>The following labour market outputs are accredited official statistics:</p><p>Earnings and employment from Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Real Time Information (RTI) (<a>accredited by the OSR in July 2025</a>.</p><p>Labour disputes (reviewed by the OSR in February 2023)</p><p>Vacancy statistics (reviewed by the OSR in April 2022)</p><p>Workforce jobs (WFJ) (reviewed by the OSR in April 2022)</p><p>Average weekly earnings (AWE) <a>(reviewed by the OSR in July 2026)</a></p><p>On 11 August 2026, <a>the ONS wrote a letter</a> to the OSR stating that LFS and APS derived outputs that are currently <a>official statistics in development</a> will move to <a>official statistics</a>. The ONS will not be seeking reaccreditation. Instead, our priority is for outputs based on the Transformed Labour Force Survey (TLFS), as the online-first sustainable replacement for the LFS and APS, to achieve the standards required to become accredited official statistics, and for the OSR to consider their accreditation at the earliest opportunity.</p><p>Claimant Count statistics are currently designated as <a>official statistics in development</a>.</p><p>We have provided an update on the transformation of labour market statistics in our <a>Labour market transformation update on progress and plans: August 2026 article</a>.</p><p>We welcome your feedback on this latest update and our plans. Please email us at <a>[email protected]</a> to tell us what you think.</p><p>For more information on how labour market data sources were affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, see our <a>Coronavirus and the effects on UK labour market statistics article</a>.</p><p>We are reviewing the release times for our market sensitive economic statistics, such as Labour market overview, to consider whether the current arrangements continue to best serve the public good, support user needs and align with the principles set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics. We are running <a>a consultation</a> to gather evidence on the impact of different release times. The consultation asks how you use market-sensitive economic statistics, your views on potential release time options, and any other considerations we should take into account. Please note that this consultation will be closing on Friday 30 October 2026.</p><p></p><p><a>ONS surveys and economic statistics improvement plan, quarterly progress update: October 2026</a><br> Article | Released 14 October 2026<br> Progress across the ONS against our recovery plans for improving our economic statistics and surveys, between July and September 2026.</p><p><a>Labour market transformation - update on progress and plans: August 2026</a><br> Article | Released 11 August 2026<br> Labour market transformation overview, building on previous engagement on the Transformed Labour Force Survey.</p><p><a>Economic activity and social change in the UK, real-time indicators: 17 September 2026</a><br> Bulletin | Released 17 September 2026<br> Faster indicators of trends in the UK economy and society, using innovative surveys, methods and data sources. These are official statistics in development.</p><p><a>Business insights and impact on the UK economy: 8 October 2026</a><br> Bulletin | Released 8 October 2026<br> The impact of challenges facing the economy and other events on UK businesses, including financial performance, workforce, trade, and business resilience.</p><p><a>Labour Force Survey performance and quality monitoring report: April to June 2026</a><br> Methodology | Released 18 August 2026<br> Response rates, sample size and quality assessment of our quarterly Labour Force Survey.</p><p><a>Labour Force Survey quality update: October 2026</a><br> Article | Released 20 October 2026<br> Assessment of Labour Force Survey data quality, including the impact of recent changes on the statistics, response levels and rates, and respondent characteristics. </p><p></p><p>Office for National Statistics (ONS), released 20 October 2026, ONS website, statistical bulletin, <a>Labourmarket overview, UK: October 2026</a> </p></body></html>