Overview of UK Statistical Data

 
Employment
  • 66.1% of 50-64 year olds are currently in employment, (August 2012)
  • This is up 1.1 percentage points from the same time last year
  • 9% of over 65s are in employment, up 0.2 percentage points on last year, (August 2012)
  • However, the number over 65s classified as unemployed has risen to 2.1% from 2% last year, (August 2012)
  • In 2010, 25.85% of the UK’s workforce was made up of over 50s
 
Unemployment 
  • Whilst only 4.9% of 50-64 year olds are classified as being unemployed, a further 30.6% are currently out of work, (August 2012)
  • This is up from 4.5% in 2010
  • And much higher than in 2008 when the unemployment rate for over 50s was only 3.6%
  • 44.2% of unemployed over 50s have been looking for work for over 12 months
  • This is higher than for any other age catergory
  • The rate of unemployed over 50s for men is slightly higher than for women, 5.6% compared to 3.1%
 
Redundancy
  • In 2010, 26.53% of the UK’s redundancies have been aged over 50
  • This is at its highest point in the last 10 years 
  • And up 4.17% from last year
  • The redundancy rate in the public sector was much higher than the national average, with 66% of all redundancies in County councils and 57% of redundancies in London Borough councils being over 50.
 
Over and Under Employment
  • Half of all workers in the UK say they would like more or less work, with 9.8 million wanting less and 3.5 million wanting more
  • 17.3% of 50-64 year olds in part time employment want more work. Men are more keen on this than women, with 22.4% of 50-64 year old men in part time employment wanting more work, compared to 15.2% of women
  • 4.1% of 50-64 year olds in full time employment say they want more work. Again, men are more keen on this, with 6.1% want more work, compared to 5.1% of women
  • 6.9% of 50-64 year olds in part time employment want less work. When broken down by gender 4.9% of 50-64 year old women want less work, compared to 6.1% of men
  • 16.5% of 50-64 year olds, 15.4% of men and 18.6% of women, in full time employment want less work
 
Reemployment
  • In 2010, 16.59% of over 50s found reemployment
  • This is up 0.21% on the previous year
  • However, this increase is significantly lower than the increase in jobs vacancies between 2009-2010, 3.75% 
  • Currently, reemployment for over 50s is down 5.67% from its highest point in the last 10 years, (2004)
  • 61% of people would work beyond 65 if offered flexible working arrangements
 
Sickness/Absence
  • 50-64 and 64+ years olds are absent less often than their younger counterparts, absence rate of 2.4% and 1.9% respectively, compare to the national average of 2.5%. 
  • 16-24 and 25-34 year olds take the most time off, with an absence rate of 2.6% for both categories
 
Pay
  • 50-59 year olds earn on average less per year than 30-39 and 40-49 year olds; £28,356 compared to £29,004 and £30,443 respectively.5
  • Over 60s earn on average £20,895 per year 
 
Discrimination
  • The number of age discrimination cases brought to tribunal has risen by a third in the past year
  • However, this is only 2% of the total age discrimination claims made
  • The average payout was £5,868. 
  • The largest payout was £48,710. This is significantly less than for other types of discrimination; disability (£729,347), sex (£442,366), race (£374,922) and sexual orientation (£163,725).