“The small drop in the number unemployed is hardly something to celebrate as it masks the reality of the rising number of those underemployed with zero hour contracts, or forced to take part time jobs because they cannot find full-time employment.
“The state of the labour market still remains a major issue. The figures show that the Government’s austerity measures are continuing to bite into public services, with another 25,000 local government workers forced out of work. Today’s budget is a opportunity for Osborne to reverse some of his drastic measures and alleviate the pain of the 6 million working people living in poverty.”
