More than one in six UK homes which house at least one person of working age does not have anyone in employment, official statistics show.

This is the highest rate since 1999, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. The number of workless households hit 3.3 million in April to June, a 240,000 rise compared with a year earlier.  

A workless household is defined by the ONS as a home, which includes at least one person of working age, where nobody aged 16 or over is in employment.

As a result, the workless household figure is higher than the number of people who are counted unemployed - 2.35 million - as it includes people such as early retirees, full-time students or those receiving disability benefit who are not included in the official unemployment statistics.

Statistics:

The proportion of households where no adults work rose by 1.1% in April to June 2009 compared with the same period a year earlier, to 16.9% - or nearly one in six working-age households.

This was the highest rate since 1999 and marked the largest year-on-year increase since comparable statistics were first collected in 1997.

The rate was highest in the north-east of England - 23.2% - and lowest in the east of England - 12.2%.

Of the households that are workless, the rate was highest in lone-parent households, at 40.4%, followed by one-person households, at 30.1%.  

More married and cohabiting fathers are spending time at home, rather than at work, the figures show. The employment rate of this group showed the largest fall, down 2.1% to 88.8%.

The total number of working-age people in workless households stood at 4.8 million in April to June 2009, up 500,000 on a year earlier. The number of children in workless households also increased, the figures show. This was up 170,000 to 1.9 million.  

 Popular Alliance Comment:

So Alistair Darling thinks the recession will be at an end soon. But the legacy of debt and unemployment are the true reflection on Labours economic performance.