Labour Market Statistics for 16 to 24 year olds: Scotland and the United Kingdom – January to December 2022

Employment

Overall

In January to December 2022, an estimated 318,700 people aged 16 to 24 were in employment in Scotland. This is 23,200 more than the number of 16 to 24 year olds employed in 2021.

The estimated employment rate for 16 to 24 year olds was 57.9 per cent in 2022. This was 4.0 percentage points (pp) higher than the year before (54.0 per cent) but the same as in 2019. January to December 2019 is the last data point in this series before the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the United Kingdom as a whole, the estimated employment rate for 16 to 24 year olds was 53.7 per cent. This was 2.4 pp higher than a year ago (51.3 per cent) but 0.4 pp lower than 2019 (54.1 per cent).

The change on year for both Scotland and the United Kingdom represent statistically significant changes.

Chart 1: Employment rate of people aged 16 to 24; Scotland and the United Kingdom; 2004 to 2022

Source: Annual Population Survey, Jan-Dec datasets, ONS

Note: Shaded areas represent 95 per cent confidence intervals

Employment by Sex

In January to December 2022, an estimated 152,400 men and 166,300 women aged 16 to 24 were in employment in Scotland.

The estimated employment rate for 16 to 24 year old men was 55.1 per cent, 2.3 percentage points (pp) higher than a year ago but 2.3 pp lower than 2019. While the estimated employment rate for 16 to 24 year old women was 60.8 per cent, 5.7 pp higher than a year ago and 2.4 pp higher than 2019.

The change on year for 16 to 24 year old women represents a statistically significant change.

Chart 2: Employment rate of people aged 16 to 24 by Sex; Scotland; 2004 to 2022

Source: Annual Population Survey, Jan-Dec datasets, ONS

Note: Shaded areas represent 95 per cent confidence intervals

Employment by Local Authority areas

Some estimates in this section may come from a small sample size. When this occurs they may be less precise and users should be cautious when quoting them.

Estimates for local authority areas considered unreliable are not included. The two areas affected are:

• Orkney Islands
• Shetland Islands

The three local authority areas with the highest 16 to 24 year old employment rates in January to December 2022 were:

• Na h-Eileanan Siar (74.0 per cent)
• South Lanarkshire (71.7 per cent)
• North Ayrshire (66.1 per cent)

The three local authority areas with the lowest 16 to 24 year old employment rates were:

• Dumfries and Galloway (46.5 per cent)
• South Ayrshire (46.6 per cent)
• Aberdeen City (51.2 per cent)

All estimates listed above except for South Lanarkshire are from a small sample size. These estimates should be used with caution.

Over the year (since January to December 2021)

The employment rate for 16 to 24 year olds had increased in 18 local authority areas. The employment rate decreased in 10 local authority areas. The area with the largest increase was North Ayrshire (23.9 percentage points (pp)). The area with the largest decrease was Renfrewshire (-14.0 pp). The change for North Ayrshire represents a statistically significant change.

The estimates for both areas in 2022 and North Ayrshire in 2021 are from small sample sizes. Therefore, the change over the year for both estimates should be used with caution.

Change since January to December 2019 (pre-pandemic)

The employment rate for 16 to 24 year olds had increased in 12 local authority areas. The employment rate decreased in 18 local authority areas. The area with the largest increase was South Lanarkshire (18.7 pp). The area with the largest decrease was Aberdeen City (-21.8 pp). The change since 2019 for both South Lanarkshire and Aberdeen City represent statistically significant changes.

The estimate for Aberdeen City in 2022 is from a small sample size. Therefore, the change since 2019 estimate should be used with caution.

Chart 3: Change in employment rates of those aged 16 to 24 between 2021 and 2022 by Local Authority area (percentage points)

Source: Annual Population Survey, Jan-Dec datasets, ONS

Note: Estimates for the following areas are not available as they are considered unreliable:

• Clackmannanshire
• Na h-Eileanan Siar
• Orkney Islands
• Shetland Islands

Italic text indicates a statistically significant change over the period.

A shaded background indicates estimates are from small sample sizes and should be used with caution.