Unemployment falls to 7.4% in August from 8.8% a year earlier

The labour market continued to improve, with the number of employed people increasing on both an annual and monthly basis, while the number of unemployed declined accordingly.

4.41 Million Employed

The number of employed people reached 4,410,105, an increase of 85,042 people, or 2.0%, compared with August 2025. Compared with July 2026, employment increased by 17,322 people, representing a monthly rise of 0.4%. This development coincided with a significant decline in the number of unemployed people, reinforcing the picture of a gradual easing in unemployment over the course of the year.

Unemployment Falls Below 351,000

The number of unemployed people stood at 350,800 in August. On an annual basis, unemployment declined by 67,181 people, or 16.1%, while compared with July 2026, the number of unemployed fell by 25,656 people, or 6.8%.

Over the course of a year, therefore, the unemployment rate fell by 1.4 percentage points, from 8.8% to 7.4%, while on a monthly basis it declined by 0.5 percentage points.

Number of People Outside the Labour Force Also Declines

At the same time, the number of people under the age of 75 who were neither working nor seeking employment — that is, those outside the labour force — stood at 2,943,171. This represented a decline of 60,682 people, or 2.0%, compared with August 2025. On a monthly basis, however, the figure recorded a marginal increase of 4,130 people, or 0.1%.

The August data therefore point to a labour market characterised by higher employment and a significantly lower number of unemployed people compared with a year earlier, while the downward trend in unemployment also continued on a monthly basis.