Unemployment in Britain fell to its lowest levels for nearly 27 years last month. Figures from the Office for National Statistics put the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in August at 943,300, a fall of 6,400.
Claimant count unemployment was last lower in October 1975 and it has now fallen by 10,100 in the past 12 months.
Despite a wave of job cuts in the recession-hit manufacturing sector, consumer spending has boosted other areas of the economy such as retail and construction.
The ONS says while there are 155,000 fewer jobs in production industries than a year ago, the number of service sector jobs is up 166,000.
The British government's preferred International Labour Organisation unemployment measure, which shows the total number of people looking for work, rose by 7,000 in the three months to July to 1.56 million.
Average earnings growth in the year to July edged up 0.1 per cent to 4 per cent on higher wage growth in the public sector.
The ONS added that the local authority one-day strike action in July saw 521,000 working days lost in the month - the largest number for 13 years.
PA