Self employed react to labour market statistics
IPSE, the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed, has today reacted to the latest employment statistics from the Office for National Statistics.
Commenting on the figures, Chris Bryce, chief executive, IPSE, said: “We continue to see strong performance from the labour market with a record number of people in work. Many of the new jobs created have been through people becoming self-employed. We know from our research that the self-employed are overwhelmingly positive about working this way and trends suggest that the number of people going it alone will only continue to grow.
“Employee wages continue to grow modestly with average earnings staying ahead of inflation. This chimes well with our payment data for the self-employed, who have experienced a small rise in average earnings since the last quarter.
“It is vital that the new government continues to do all it can to support and nurture the self-employed who number 4.5 million people. Appointing a small business minister is a good first step as the UK’s smallest businesses deserve a voice at the heart of government. We look forward to the new minister driving policy that creates an enabling regulatory environment for our sector to grow and contribute even further to the UK economy’s success.”