Borough Profile 2020 Chapter 2 Employment Summary During

Borough Profile 2020 Chapter 2: Employment

Summary • During 2016 -19, around two thirds of Tower Hamlets working age population were in employment (67%). • 86% of residents with a higher level qualifications are in employment compared to just one third of those with no qualifications in the borough. Those with no qualification have a lower employment rate in Tower Hamlets compared to London and Great Britain. • Residents whose main language is English are almost three times more likely to work compared with those who have a poor proficiency in spoken English. • Residents in the borough working full time earn higher than those in London. Over half of the jobs based in Tower Hamlets are in the financial, professional and technical sectors, while just one third of resident are employed in these sectors (34%). • The ethnic (White and BME) gap in employment rate in Tower Hamlets is twice as wide as the gap observed in London (ethnic gap in the borough 27%, ethnic gap in London- 12. 5%). The ethnic employment gap amongst women is twice as wide in the borough (36%) than in London (15%). • Over three quarters of adults aged 25 -49 are in work. Employment is generally low for the 16 -24 age group. • According to the 2011 Census, two thirds of all Bangladeshi households (68%) and just over half of all Somali households (53%) had dependent children. • Less than half (42%) of all disabled people aged 16 -64 were in employment compared with nearly three quarters (72%) of the non-disabled population. • The number of Claimant count (out of work benefits) is higher in Tower Hamlets than London or Great Britain.

Employment During 2016 -19, around two thirds of Tower Hamlets working age population were in employment- 67% that is around 7% below the employment rate in London and 8% below the employment rate in Great Britain. Economic Activity, Persons Aged 16 -64, Tower Hamlets, July 2016 - June 2019 Employed One third of the working age population were not in employment, this comprised of: Unemployed and actively seeking work (7%) Caring for family Too sick to work Full time education Would like to work (15%) Economically Inactive 26% Economically inactive (26%) • • Unemployed 7% 67% Source: ONS Annual Population Survey (July to June extracts, 3 year average) 20162019

Overall borough population (2) Employment Rate Trends, 2007 - 2019 Tower Hamlets London Great Britain 80 72 70 71 61 60 60 72 69 66 63 60 60 72 71 70 70 74 74 75 68 68 67 50 40 30 20 10 Source: ONS Annual Population Survey (July to June extracts 2007 -2019) 19 20 16 - 20 18 15 - 20 20 14 20 20 17 16 20 13 - 20 20 12 20 11 - 20 15 14 13 20 10 - 20 12 20 20 09 20 20 08 20 -2 01 0 11 0 20 07 Tower Hamlets has a lower employment rate than London or Great Britain, the rate has fallen slightly since a peak in 201316, however London and Great Britain have shown a small but gradual rise over the same period.

Employment Deprivation • Tower Hamlets was the 114 th most deprived local authority area in England (of 317) on the Indices of Multiple Deprivation employment domain in 2019, having been 76 th most deprived in 2015 2019

Employment and Qualifications Qualification levels are strongly associated with whether people are in work or not. 86% of those who held a higher level qualification are in employment compared to just one third of those with no qualifications in the borough. Those with no qualifications have a lower employment rate in Tower Hamlets compared with their counterparts in London or Great Britain. Employment Rates by Qualifications, 2016 -18 No Qualifications Other Qualifications Higher Level Qualifications 30% Tower Hamlets 57% 86% 43% London 65% 85% 45% Great Britain 58% 85% 0% 20% 40% 60% Source: ONS Population Survey, 3 year average, December 2016 - 2018 80% 100%

Language Proficiency and Employment 2011 Census data highlighted the strong association between language proficiency and labour market outcomes. Our analysis shows residents whose first language was English were almost three times more likely to be in work compared with those who had poor proficiency in spoken English (71% main language English vs 25% cannot speak English well/ at all). Those whose first language was other than English, but were fluent in English have an employment rate of 61%, this is twice as high as the rate for those with poor proficiency in English. Emplyoment Rate (%) by English Language Proficiency, Tower Hamlets, 2011 80 70 60 50 71 64 61 53 40 30 20 25 10 0 All aged 16 and Main language over English not English Can speak Cannot speak English well/at Source: 2011 Census well/very well all

Hours of Work and Earnings Wage rates among full time working residents are 9% higher in Tower Hamlets than in London (£ 19. 33 per hour in Tower Hamlets vs £ 17. 58 per hour in London), while the opposite is true for part time workers, who earn 9% less in Tower Hamlets (£ 9. 63 per hour) compared with London generally (£ 10. 17 per hour). Median Gross Pay Per Hour by Place of Residence including Gender and Working patterns, 2018 London £ 15. 90 £ 17. 25 All Employees £ 17. 58 £ 19. 33 Full Time Workers £ 10. 17 £ 9. 63 Part Time Workers £ 16. 96 £ 18. 32 Male £ 14. 85 £ 16. 55 Female £ 18. 33 £ 20. 64 Male Full Time Workers Hourly paid rates for women are lower than those of men in London (£ 14. 85 for women in London vs £ 16. 96 for men in London). Tower Hamlets £ 16. 86 £ 17. 93 Female Full Time Workers £ 9. 95 £ 8. 85 Male Part Time Workers £ 10. 26 £ 10. 00 Female Part Time Workers £- £ 5. 00 £ 10. 00 £ 15. 00 Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings – Resident Analysis 2018 £ 20. 00 £ 25. 00

Employment Patterns – Types of Jobs Over half of the jobs based in Tower Hamlets are in the financial, professional and technical sectors but just one third of resident workers are employed in these sectors (34% of residents in Banking, Finance and Insurance). Employment Patterns - Residents and Workers, 2016 -2019 Residents Jobs in Tower Hamlets 6% Manufacturing, Construction, Energy, Water (A-F) 4% 19% Distribution, Hotels and Restaurants (G, I) 11% 12% Transport and Communications (H, J) Residents are more likely to work in the distribution, hotels and restaurants sector than workers based in the borough (19% of residents in the distribution, hotel and restaurant sector vs 11% of workers in the sector). Residents are also more likely to be employed in the public administration, education and health sectors (23% of residents compared to 19% of workers). 11% 34% Banking, Finance and Insurance (K-N) 52% 23% Public Administration, Education and Health (O-Q) Other Services (R-U) 19% 6% 3% 0% Source: ONS, APS 2016 -19 (3 year average) 20% 40% 60%

Employment Rate by Gender and Ethnicity Employment Rates by Gender and Ethnicity, Tower Hamlets and London, 2016 - 2019. 100% London 54% 59% 69% 75% 74% 67% 81% 79% 61% 60% 72% 70% 88% 84% 90% 80% 50% 40% 38% Employment rate for BME women in Tower Hamlets is much lower than the employment rate of BME women in London (38%- BME women in Tower Hamlets, while 59% BME women in London), leaving a gap of 21% points. Tower Hamlets 85% 84% At 85% the employment rate for males is 24 percentage points higher than the female employment rate. 30% 20% The gender gap amongst the White population in the borough is far narrower - 74%-White women vs 88% White men. 10% 0% Male Female White BME White Men Women Source: ONS Annual Population Survey, June to July 2016 -2019, 3 Year Average BME Men Women

Employment by Age In Tower Hamlets employment rates are highest for people in the 25 -49 age group. Over three quarters of adults in this age group were in work (76%). % Employment Rates by Age, Tower Hamlets and London, 2016 - 2019 Tower Hamlets 90 80 Around 54% of Tower Hamlets residents aged 5064 were in work during 2016 -19 - considerably lower than the proportion in London of 71%. Around 9% of residents aged 65 and over are still in employment compared with 14% in London. Employment rate is generally low for 16 -24 year age group. In Tower Hamlets, less than half of those aged 16 -24 were in work during 2016 -19 (43%). The 2011 Census found that over one third (36%) of residents aged 16 -24 were not in work because they were in full-time education. London 83 76 74 70 71 67 60 54 50 40 43 45 30 20 14 10 9 0 16 -64 16 -24 25 -49 50 -64 Source: ONS Annual Population Survey (June to July- 2016 -19, 3 year average) 65+

Unemployment by Age According to the 2011 Census, 14% of young people (aged 16 -24) said they were unemployed compared with 7% of those aged 25 -64. Claimant Count by Age Band, Tower Hamlet, September 2019 9, 000 8, 000 Recent statistics, based on ONS Claimant Count, identify 1, 395 young people aged 16 -24 claiming an out of work benefit. This figure excludes virtually all 16 and 17 year olds. 8, 025 7, 000 6, 000 5, 000 4, 440 4, 000 3, 000 2, 115 1, 395 1, 000 70 0 All categories: Age 16+ Aged 16 -24 Aged 25 -49 Source: ONS Claimant Count by Sex and Age 2019 Aged 50 -64 Aged 65+

Employment Rate by Disability Disabled people face a higher risk of worklessness compared with the non-disabled population. Less than half of all disabled people aged 16 -64 were in work compared with nearly three quarters of the nondisabled population (42%- Disabled residents in Tower Hamlets vs 72%- Non-Disabled residents in Tower Hamlets). With an employment gap of 30% points. The employment gap in London and Great Britain is slightly smaller. National research has found that disabled people with learning difficulties and those suffering from mental health problems have the lowest employment rates across all groups in the UK*. *Labour Force Survey, April to June 2016 - DWP (Work, health and disability green paper: data pack) % Employment Rates by Disability, Persons Aged 16 -64, 2016 -2019 90% Disabled Not Disabled 80% 81% 79% 70% 72% 60% 50% 40% 52% 53% 42% 30% 20% 10% 0% Tower Hamlets London Source: ONS Annual Population Survey, 3 year average 2016 -19 Great Britain

Caring/Parenting Responsibilities Parenthood is strongly related to ethnicity: BME households, particularly Bangladeshi and Somali households, are far more likely than other groups to have children. % of households with children by ethnicity, Tower Hamlets, 2011 Bangladeshi 2011 Census data revealed that just over two thirds of all Bangladeshi households (68%), and just over half of all Somali households (53%), had dependent children compared with just 13% of White British households. Somali and Bangladeshi households were also more likely than other groups to live in extended families. 68 Other Black 44 Black African 41 Pakistani 32 Arab 30 Black Caribbean 25 Other Asian 24 Other ethnic group 24 Mixed ethnic groups 22 Indian 19 White British 13 Chinese 13 White other 13 White Irish Source: 2011 Census 8 0 20 40 60 80

Worklessness The claimant count measures the number of working age residents who are claiming an out of work benefit for being unemployed- out of work, able to work and actively seeking work. In Tower Hamlets the claimant count rate has consistently been higher than London and Great Britain. The borough has followed the national and regional trend. Claimant count as a proportion of residents aged 16 -64, May 2013 to May 2020, Tower 9. 0% Hamlets, London and Great Britain 8. 2% 8. 0% 7. 0% 6. 0% 4. 9% 5. 0% Claimant numbers rose to well over 19, 000 in May 2020 following a sharp rise as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. There had, however, been a gradual rising trend in the claimant count from 2017 onwards. 3. 3% 4. 0% 3. 2% 2. 8% 3. 0% 2. 3% 2. 2% 2. 0% Source: ONS Claimant Count, May 2013 to 1. 0% May 2020 0. 0% Tower Hamlets London Great Britain 8. 2% 7. 6% 6. 5% 3. 2% 2. 7% 2. 8% 2. 1% 2. 3% 2. 0% 1. 9% 2. 2% 1. 9% 1. 8% 2. 3% 2. 0% 1. 9% 3. 3% 2. 7% 2. 6% 4. 9% 3. 7% 3. 6%