The number of people on payrolls has fallen to its lowest level since October 2023, official figures showed, in the wake of Rachel Reeves’s tax raid on businesses.
Staff numbers declined by 164,000 in July compared to the same month last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), taking the total to 30.3m.
It comes as companies grapple with rising staff costs caused by the Chancellor’s decision to raise the national minimum wage and employer National Insurance contributions in April.
However, average wage growth slowed down from 5pc to 4.6pc during the period, the ONS said.
The number of jobs vacancies fell for the 37th month in a row to 718,000 between May and July, down by 44,000 on the previous three months.
