UNEMPLOYMENT in Worcester increased slightly in January, but has dropped significantly since this time last year.

Monthly figures show 1,191 people in the city – 813 men and 378 women – were claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance last month, or 1.8 per cent of working-age people.

Although this is up 11 since December, the overall amount has fallen by 624 since January 2014.

The picture was similar across Worcestershire as a whole, where 5,035 people – 1.4 per cent of the working-age population – were claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance last month, up from 4,746 in December but down from 8,017 in January 2014.

Across the country as a while the amount of people registering as unemployed dropped by 97,000 to 1.86 million – down almost 500,000 since January 2014.

Worcester MP Robin Walker welcomed the figures, which also show a drop of 1,321 since April 2010.

“I am confident that we will see more jobs created as more businesses move into the city and set up here,” he said.

“We are already expecting the big new Waitrose at London Road and just this week heard about a new mini M&S on Malvern Road, engineering firms I speak to in the city are taking people on and only this week I met with an insurance company who are looking to double their numbers.

“It is a very exciting time for employment and this is reflected in some of the lowest figures for claimants on record. It is also exciting to see wages beginning to rise above inflation”

He added, although the amount of people out of work traditionally increases in January as temporary Christmas positions come to an end, this year’s increase was the lowest for more than seven years.

Business development manager for the Department for Work and Pensions covering Worcestershire Mike Dzioba said: “If you look at the previous month it will show an increase, but looking at it year on year in Worcester the figure is down 38 per cent since last year.

“Looking at the country as a whole the figures show the economy is on the upturn and that’s predicted to continue.

“In the West Midlands since 2010 private sector employment is up 150,000 and up 54,000 since last year.”

But leader of the GMB union Paul Kenny said the majority of new jobs being created were low skilled and poorly paid with very little job security.

“Even skilled workers in the UK face being undercut while wages are stagnant or falling in real terms,” he said.

"Most workers have seen little or no evidence of any recovery in living standards due to the Tories wasting their time in office by not promoting real economic growth based on investment and productivity gains."

In the West Midlands the figure stood at 169,000, or 6.1 per cent of the working-age population, a drop of 32,000.

The UK now has the third lowest unemployment rate in the European Union at 5.7 per cent, behind Austria at 4.9 per cent and Germany at 4.8 per cent.