According to figures from the ONS, the Office for National Statistics, the number of people unemployed in the UK rose to 2.261m in the period February to April this year. This is the highest it has been since November 1996. The rise sparked fears that more consumers could be forced into financial difficulty, and may require debt management assistance in order to deal with ever increasing demands on their budget.
Since the start of the recession the number of consumers that have fallen behind with debt repayments has reached record levels. Some of this has been down to irresponsible spending, but in ever increasing numbers, the cause can be attributed to employment difficulties.
The percentage of people that are now out of work, also known as the jobless rate, climbed to 7.2%, which is the highest it has been since the middle of 1997. The number of people claiming unemployment benefit increased by 39,000 during May.
The age group that has been hit hardest by the recession are the 18-24 year olds, where the jobless rate has now reached 16.6%. They will not take much hope from the news that the number of new employment vacancies is also on the decline. The number of new jobs available fell by 35.6% over the last 12 months, from 659,000 in May last year to 424,000 in May 2009.
Many of the people affected by unemployment are finding it hard to make ends meet as they attempt to cope with credit card debt and personal loan commitments, as well as other household expenses. Debt advice specialists recommend that professional help is sought, if maintaining debt repayments becomes an unmanageable problem. The consequences of non-action could be serious.
