Employment levels falling
Employment levels fell 122,000 in the last quarter to 29.4 million, the biggest three-monthly fall since 1993, Office for National Statistics said.
The official data also showed a 46,000 drop in the number of manufacturing jobs to a record low of 2.87 million.
Meanwhile, the number of people classed as economically inactive rose by 16,000 in the latest period to 7.89 million, 20% of the working age population.