Victims of the white collar recession as professionals sign on the dole

Hard justice: the Inns of Court. The number of lawyers in the capital claiming jobseeker’s allowance has shot up over 18 months from 155 to nearly a thousand
12 April 2012

Unemployment is spiralling among white collar professions in the capital.

Thousands of directors, bankers, architects, lawyers, managers, analysts and teachers in London and the South-East have signed on the dole since the recession started in April last year.

The number of chief executives and directors claiming the £64.30-a-week jobseeker's allowance jumped from 190 in April last year to 615 last month.

The rise in lawyers claiming benefits has been even sharper, up from 155 to 905, according to figures released today by the Office of National Statistics.

But with many construction projects halting, architects have fared the worst, with 790 signing on compared with 65 at the start of the recession. The number of teachers on the dole has jumped over the last 18 months from 480 to 1,615.

The Conservatives accused the Government of failing to do enough to help unemployed white-collar workers.

"Labour hasn't got a clue about how to deal with professional people who have become victims of Gordon Brown's recession," said shadow work secretary Theresa May. "Jobcentres aren't geared up to offer the specialised help that is desperately required."

But employment minister Jim Knight stressed that jobcentres advertised a "wide variety" of vacancies for professionals.

"We also refer people to specialist recruitment agencies that can offer support and coaching," he said.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development is warning that 600,000 public sector jobs will go as the Government tackles Britain's debt mountain.

But experts predict the worst of the recession is almost over, with the Square Mile recovering quicker than other parts of Britain.

Personnel institute public policy adviser Gerwyn Davies said: "Jobs have been shed in the financial sector and new ones are likely therefore to be created more quickly. This will boost other professions linked to the City."

Sir Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, said this week that Britain had "started along the road to recovery", after figures showed the smallest rise in unemployment since the start of the downturn.

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