Employment among 50 to 64s is still below its 2019 rate

In May to July 2026, 9,515,000 people aged 50 to 64 were in work, an employment rate of 72.2 per cent. In the same months of 2019 the rate was 72.7 per cent. For people aged 35 to 49 the rate was 85.1 per cent, a gap of 12.9 points. 3,389,000 people aged 50 to 64 were economically inactive, 25.7 per cent of the age group, against 25.2 per cent in 2019. 277,000 were unemployed, 2.8 per cent. The number of 50 to 64s in work has risen by around 1.9 million since 2012, when the rate was 66.0 per cent.

The figures are from table A05, Labour market status by age group, seasonally adjusted, published by the Office for National Statistics on 15 September 2026 from the Labour Force Survey. Rates are the share of the age group in work, unemployed or inactive. The rise since 2012 is arithmetic on the published levels, not a figure the table states. The ONS advises comparing non-overlapping quarters; the comparisons here are with the same three months in earlier years.