The People Bulletin

Back in January 2011, The People Bulletin talked to one of many jobseekers experience the ‘customer service’ of the fortnightly visit to their local DWP office to sign on for Jobseeker’s allowance. [1]

Our jobseeker was well over 50, so would not be surprised to learn that, according to some recent research, over-50s workers made redundant are the most likely to have to take a pay cut to get a new job.

Over the hill and far away?

Key Retirement solutions commissioned a survey of 3,395 adults only, including 995 over -50s between 6 and 13 May 2011. The findings made grim reading:

• 77% of over-50s made redundant in the last three years took a pay cut to get back into full-time employment.
• 35% of them admitted they had to take a ‘considerably lower’ salary.
• 51% have to take a completely different role or work in a new sector to get back into employment
• Only 50% of 21 to 30 year-olds made redundant took a pay cut rising to 63% for the 41 to 50 age group.
• 46% of over-50s made redundant during the past three years have yet to find a job.

• Over-50s take on average 4.7 months to get back into work.

• 6% of over-50s who lost their jobs got a higher paid one.
• 7% of over-50s got a job at the same salary as before.

When we caught up with our jobseeker (who is over 60), he confirmed that he had at last been able to sign off from Jobseekers Allowance by taking a temporary summer job – paying the minimum wage. He is hopeful this may lead to permanent work.

The wider picture

The latest labour market figures released by the ONS give little clue of any sustained recovery in the jobs market, three years on from the start of the recession. The number of individuals on Jobseeker’s Allowance increased by nearly 20,000 in the quarter to April, standing within 7,000 of the 1.5 million level.

The Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion believes the poor figures are inextricably linked to the shortage of vancancies:

“The labour market figures published on 15 June were poor. The survey-based figures for February to April continued to show improvements, but in general the less precise monthly changes were poor. The more recent vacancies and claimant count figures were distinctly poor. This poor picture is reinforced by our own analyses of flows into longer-term unemployment and of Jobcentre vacancies. The problem is not just that lone parents are now joining JSA in greater numbers - it also remains the case that people are not flowing off JSA as quickly once they have started to claim. The disappointing vacancy figures suggest why.”[2]

[1] 'The jobseekers tale' 26 January 2011 in The People Bulletin

[2]  www.cesi.org.uk/statistics/previous_months/lmsjune2011