The main points from the Labour Force Survey for the fourth quarter of 2018 (October to December) — provided by the Office for National Statistics (www.ons.gov.uk) — show that the number of people in work increased between the third quarter and the fourth quarter, while the number of unemployed people and the number of people aged from 16 to 64 years not working and not seeking nor available to work (economically inactive) both fell.

There were an estimated 32.60 million people in work, 167,000 more than for the third quarter of 2018 (and 444,000 more than for the fourth quarter of 2017), while the employment rate (the proportion of people aged from 16 to 64 years who were in work) was estimated at 75.8% — higher than for a year earlier (75.2%) and the joint-highest figure since comparable estimates began in 1971.

Meanwhile, there were an estimated 844,000 people (not seasonally adjusted) in employment on zero-hours contracts in their main job (57,000 fewer than for the fourth quarter of 2017), and an estimated 1.36 million unemployed people (people not in work but seeking and available to work).

This is 14,000 fewer than for the third quarter of 2018 and 100,000 fewer than for the fourth quarter of 2017.

The unemployment rate (the number of unemployed people as a proportion of all employed and unemployed people) was estimated at 4.0% (it has not been lower since December 1974 to February 1975), and there were an estimated 8.63 million people aged from 16 to 64 years who were economically inactive (not working and not seeking nor available to work), 94,000 fewer than for the third quarter of 2018.

Latest estimates show that average weekly earnings for employees in Great Britain in real terms (that is, adjusted
for price inflation) increased by 1.2% excluding bonuses, and by 1.3% including bonuses, compared with the fourth quarter of 2017).