London Youth Labour Market Summary February 2024

London economy

The forecast in 2023 is for more London jobs (3.5% in annual terms), with numbers predicted to fall in 2024 (0.1%) before moving to a longer-term average in 2025 (1.1%). 

Employment

There are some differences in employment between London and the rest of the UK. 

Sector

London %

UK %

Manufacturing

1.8

7.1

Construction

4.2

6.1

Wholesale, Retail & Vehicle Repair

10.3

12.8

Transport & Storage

4.6

5.1

Hospitality & Catering

8.7

7.6

IT & Communications

8.8

4.5

Finance

6.3

3.1

Professional, Scientific & Technical

14.7

9.3

Administration

10.3

8.7

Public Administration & Defence

4.3

4.6

Education

6.4

8.3

Health & Social Work

10.6

13.1

Arts, Entertainment & Recreation

2.8

2.8

Source: Office for National Statistics

Future employment

Employment is projected to rise in London, from 6 million jobs in 2021 to 6.6 million in 2031, 6.8 million in 2041 and 6.9 million in 2051.

Growth in professional services jobs over the past 30 years has made it by far the largest sector in London’s economy and the sector is expected to continue growing at a faster rate than for total jobs.

Graduate employment

The UK graduate labour market was resilient through COVID-19. The majority of  graduates were in full-time work 15 months after graduating.

Of those graduates in work, 76% were in professional-level employment (a higher proportion than the year before) and 5% were unemployed.

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