Unemployment continues to fall in Carmarthenshire

Latest figures show that unemployment continues to fall in Carmarthenshire making it one of the lowest claimant areas in Wales.
There has been a decrease of 23% in the number of claimants over a period of 12 months, from 3,211 in June 2013 to 2,472 in June this year.
It continues to fall with a further decrease of 6.8%, or 181 people, in the last month, now ranking Carmarthenshire as sixth lowest in Wales for Jobseekers Allowance claims, and lower than the Welsh average.
In particular, the number of young jobseekers aged between and 18 and 24 has plummeted over a 12 month period.
Statistics show that claimants in that age bracket fell by over a third from June 2013 to June 2014 – from 995 to 645. Many young claimants have found work in the retail and hospitality sectors.
Jobcentre Employer and Partnerships Manager Menna Davies said: “The good news continues for Carmarthenshire with a drop of 815 claimants on the Jobseekers Allowance register.”
Figures for Carmarthenshire show that male JSA Claimants account for 65.5% (1,618) of the total claimants whilst the female claimants account for the remaining 34.5% (854).
Figures released show that a total of 765 people have been claiming JSA for over 12 months and 1,220 have been claiming for over 6 months.
The number of claimants aged under 24 has decreased to 650 (8%) since lastmonth, this consists of 67% males and 33% females.
County council Leader Cllr Kevin Madge said the figures showed that the policy of regeneration and job creation was working.
“These figures speak for themselves,” Cllr Madge said. “Our investment and regeneration programmes are all about job creation .
“It is excellent news for Carmarthenshire to see that this policy and all the hard work and commitment is paying off.”
There are several events being held for claimants at local Jobcentres over the next few weeks including:
A Feeding Britain’s Future Jobs Fair for Ammanford claimants on Wednesday, October 1.
A Jobsfair in St Peter’s Hall, Carmarthen, on Thursday, October 16.
A ‘Be your own Boss’ self employment day at Ammanford Jobcentre on Friday, October 3.