Scottish trades unions launch employment campaign

In places like West Dunbartonshire, 40 people are chasing every vacancy

Up to 40 people are chasing every job vacancy in some parts of the country, the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) has claimed.

It said the Labour market in Scotland had fared worse during the recession than the rest of the UK.

The STUC said the trend was "deeply worrying".

It has called for greater priority to be given to tackling unemployment in Scotland by both the UK and Scottish governments.

STUC general secretary Grahame Smith said: "The analysis we are publishing today shows that over the past four years Scotland has experienced steeper declines in total employment and full-time employment than any other part of the United Kingdom and a steeper increase in ILO (International Labour Organization) unemployment.

"The claimant count in Scotland has nearly doubled over this period; a higher increase than for the UK as a whole. For every full-time vacancy in Scotland there are eight JSA (Jobseeker's Allowance) claimants.

"In the worst hit area of West Dunbartonshire, 40 people are chasing every job."

The STUC has called a march and rally in Glasgow on Saturday to call for a change in economic priorities.

Mr Smith added: "We have seen a 400% rise in long-term youth unemployment since the spring of 2008.

"We are also hearing from an unprecedented number of graduates who are failing to find work or undertaking part-time work which would normally be expected be undertaken by other sections of the workforce.

"Whilst on a number of indicators Scotland has performed slightly better than the rest of the United Kingdom, the inescapable conclusion is that the Scottish labour market has performed relatively badly since the recession started."