UK loses 220,000 working days to strikes in January with education ‘most affected’, figures show

In January the number of working days lost to strike action totalled 220,000, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show.

The first month of the year saw walkouts by teachers, rail workers, driving examiners, bus drivers and NHS staff as workers demanded better pay and conditions.

While still high, the number of working days lost to strikes was down compared to December 2022 where 822,000 days were lost to industrial action.

Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said education was the “most affected sector” in January.

He added: “The number of working days lost to strikes fell in January from the very high level seen in December. Nevertheless, many days were still lost”.

Unemployment remained at a steady 3.7% - the same as last month. The figure is only a slight increase from a low not seen since 1974. An economist polled by Reuters forecast had expected the rate to increase to 3.8%.

Despite unemployment remaining low, the number of job vacancies fell for the eighth consecutive period by 51,000 to 1.1 million from December to February.

ONS respondents said the fall was due to economic pressures pausing or refraining hiring, and reflected the uncertainty across industries.

Wages increased by 5.7% from November to January - but workers are still earning less. Real pay, including bonuses, fell by 3.2% as wage and bonus growth failed to keep up with the increasing costs of goods.

Recent official figures show inflation is at 10.1% meaning people are now effectively earning less. Pay rises also differed across the economy, with private employers seeing their pay increase by an average of 7% while public sector workers only had a pay rise of 4.8%.

The number of people neither working or seeking work decreased to 21.3% in November to January 2023. This is down from 21.4% in the three months up to December, with the fall being driven by people aged 16 to 24.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “The jobs market remains strong, but inflation remains too high. To help people’s wages go further, we need to stick to our plan to halve inflation this year.

“Tomorrow at the budget, I will set out how we will go further to bear down on inflation, reduce debt and grow the economy, including by helping more people back into work.”