The latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), shows that the level of employment is now the highest it’s ever been, with 29.4 million payrolled employees in November 2021; 1.4 million more than November 2020. Ever since March 2021, the amount of payrolled employees has consistently increased by an average of 0.53% - equivalent to an average of 152,913 people a month.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a significant factor in the amount of payrolled employees in the UK, with numbers being as low as 28 million in November 2020 – the lowest figure from the ONS since February 2017. Despite this, the numbers hit a record high just one year later.

This is especially good news with the festive season underway, meaning more people can enjoy a Christmas in employment. However experts suggest this could be hindered in the coming months by the Omicron coronavirus variant.

Between August and September, the overall unemployment rate dropped to 4.2% according to the ONS, with Darren Morgan, the head of economic statistics saying ‘"With still no sign of the end of the furlough scheme hitting the number of jobs, the total of employees on payroll continued to grow strongly in November," said head of economic statistics Darren Morgan.

The end of the furlough scheme in September 2021 did not have as significant effect on the job market as experts initially thought, with the UK exceeding pre-pandemic levels of payrolled staff. While experts say it’s too early to gauge the impact of the Omicron variant, there is still the possibility that the new government precautions of encouraging working from home could impact the amount of payrolled employees.

This article was contributed by international payroll experts, FMP Global.