Freelancers and contractors who rely on the public sector for contracts could find themselves struggling to find work according to the CIPD. The Institute thinks that around 50,000 jobs will be chopped from the sector by spring next year.
The latest market report from the ONS showed that whilst private sector employment increased by 12,000 in the quarter ending April, 7,000 jobs were lost in the public sector.
The private sector is currently showing a welcome revival but will there be enough jobs to go around once public sector cuts get fully underway?
The chief economic adviser to the CIPD, Dr John Philpott, is not optimistic. He says that unless the private sector shows a very strong recovery, unemployment might reach 3 million within the next 2 years.
The majority of the new private sector jobs are part-time, temporary or being filled by self employed people. In fact there are now 1.08 million employees and freelancers working in part-time jobs because they cannot secure a full-time contract.
The quarter ending April also saw a rise of 48,000 in the number of 18 to 24 year olds in work. The majority of these were on training and PAYE employment programmes instigated by the Labour government.
With the full extent of public sector spending cuts expected to be announced in next week’s budget, it is to be hoped that the coalition can prove that its welfare to work measures will continue to help young people.
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