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Labour market update: October 2026

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Labour market update infographic for October 2026 showing Scottish labour market indicators for June to August 2026. Three columns compare unemployment, employment and economic inactivity. Across the UK, horizontal bar charts rank nations. Unemployment: England 4.9%, UK 4.7%, Scotland 4.3%, Wales 3.4%, Northern Ireland 2.1%. Employment: England 75.6%, UK 75.3%, Scotland 74.0%, Wales 73.3%, Northern Ireland 72.5%. Economic inactivity: Northern Ireland 25.9%, Wales 24.0%, Scotland 22.6%, UK 20.9%, England 20.4%. A row of trend charts shows Scotland over the last five quarters. Unemployment rises from 3.7% in June to August 2025 to 4.3% in June to August 2026. Employment changes from 74.4% to 74.0%. Economic inactivity changes from 22.7% to 22.6%. A row of donut charts shows results by sex. Women: unemployment 3.2%, employment 71.4%, economic inactivity 26.2%. Men: unemployment 5.4%, employment 76.7%, economic inactivity 18.8%. A final row of bar charts shows age groups in Scotland. Unemployment is 13.8% for ages 16 to 24, 4.6% for 25 to 34, 3.7% for 35 to 49, and 2.0% for 50 to 64. Employment is 53.1%, 83.9%, 83.7% and 69.6% respectively. Economic inactivity is 38.4%, 12.0%, 13.1% and 28.9% respectively. Data source: Office for National Statistics labour market statistics, October 2026.
Download data in this image (XLSX)

Sources: UK Labour Market: October 2026 and Labour market in the regions of the UK: October 2026

For constituency-level labour market statistics, please visit the labour market in Scotland dashboard.

Fraser Murray

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