The number of UK workers on payrolls rose by 90,000 between April and May to 29.6 million, the Office for National Statistics said.
Sam Beckett, head of economic statistics at the Office for National Statistics (ONS), said: “Today’s figures continue to show a mixed picture for the labour market.
“While the number of people in employment is up again in the three months to April, the figure remains below pre-pandemic levels.
“Moreover, although the number of people neither in work nor looking for a job has fallen slightly in the latest period, that remains well up on where it was before Covid-19 struck.
“At the same time, unemployment is close to a 50-year low point and there was a record low number of redundancies.
“Job vacancies are still slowly rising, too. At a new record level of 1.3 million, this is over half a million more than before the onset of the pandemic.”
She added: “The high level of bonuses continues to cushion the effects of rising prices on total earnings for some workers, but if you exclude bonuses, pay in real terms is falling at its fastest rate in over a decade.”
Melanie Wilkes, Head of Research at the Work Foundation, Lancaster University, a leading think tank for improving work in the UK, said: “Today’s data may show record employment levels (75.6%) but one in five UK workers are in severely insecure jobs, and the UK continues to face mass staff shortages as economic inactivity remains high (21.3%).
“Over 6 million British workers experience low pay, uncertain hours or reduced employment rights. In the context of a cost of living crisis, insecure workers are most at risk from rising inflation and a slowing economy. The Government cannot level up the country unless it introduces new legislation to deal with work insecurity.
“And when it comes to tackling inactivity, blunt instruments like the Way To Work scheme or more draconian welfare policies that push job seekers into any job will not help those businesses struggling to fill 1.3 million vacancies. We need to see a proper plan for participation, with more tailored and specialist support for those who want a job but who face multiple barriers to doing so.”