This table provides metadata for the actual indicator available from UK statistics closest to the corresponding global SDG indicator. Please note that even when the global SDG indicator is fully available from UK statistics, this table should be consulted for information on national methodology and other UK-specific metadata information.
| Indicator available | |
|---|---|
| Indicator description |
The unemployment rate is a useful measure of the underutilization of the labour supply. It reflects the inability of an economy to generate employment for those persons who want to work but are not doing so, even though they are available for employment and actively seeking work. It is thus seen as an indicator of the efficiency and effectiveness of an economy to absorb its labour force and of the performance of the labour market. Short-term time series of the unemployment rate can be used to signal changes in the business cycle; upward movements in the indicator often coincide with recessionary periods or in some cases with the beginning of an expansionary period as persons previously not in the labour market begin to test conditions through an active job search. |
| Geographical coverage |
United Kingdom |
| Unit of measurement |
Percentage (%) of economically active |
| Definitions |
Unemployment measures people of age 16 and over without a job who have been actively seeking work within the last four weeks and are available to start work within the next two weeks. The unemployment rate is the proportion of all employed and unemployed people (not the proportion of the total population) who are unemployed. Disability Status - The (GSS) harmonised "core" definition identifies a person as disabled if they have a physical or mental health condition or illness that has lasted or is expected to last 12 months or more. It must reduce their ability to carry-out day-to-day activities. It is important to note that a person who has a long-term illness that does not reduce their ability to carry-out day-to-day activities is not disabled under the definition. The GSS harmonised questions are asked of the respondent in the survey, meaning that disability status is self-reported. The GSS definition is designed to reflect the definitions that appear in legal terms in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) for Northern Ireland and the 2010 Equality Act for Great Britain |
| Available disaggregations | |
| Calculations |
No calculations were performed as the sources provide the data in the required form for the indicator. |
| Other information |
The figures for unemployment and economically active individuals are measured for the ages 16 and above. Nationality is available alongside country of birth from the source (see Sources tab). The Washington Group on Disability Statistics are often used to provide a cross- nationally comparable population-based measures of disability. Please see the article Measuring disability - comparing approaches for a comparison between the GSS Harmonised measure (used here) and the Washington Group measure. For not seasonally adjusted data, it is best practice to only compare the same quarter for different years (e.g., compare January-March 2018 with January-March 2019 but do not compare July-September 2018 with January-March 2019). Data follows the UN specification for this indicator. This indicator has been identified in collaboration with topic experts. |
| Data last updated | 09 December 2021 |
| Metadata last updated | 22 November 2021 |