Scotland's Economy

  • Employability Day: Making sure no one is left behind

    17th June 2022 by

    This week I was fortunate to visit a No One Left Behind information event, for people seeking employment and training opportunities, held by Working 4U in West Dunbartonshire. I spoke to staff and those who use this valuable service about their employability journeys. On Employability Day there is no better time to raise awareness of…

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  • Scotland’s labour market continues to perform well

    16th July 2019 by

    Commenting on this month’s labour market statistics update, released by the ONS for March to May 2019, Business Minister Jamie Hepburn said: “Yet again we are seeing strong results for Scotland’s labour market. Scotland’s employment rate rose over the quarter and year to 75.8%, very close to the highest on record. The unemployment rate fell…

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  • Employment rate in Scotland highest on record

    11th June 2019 by

    Commenting on this month’s labour market statistics update, released by the ONS for February to April 2019, Employment Minister Jamie Hepburn said: “Yet again we’re seeing records broken in Scotland’s labour market.  “Scotland’s employment rate rose to 75.9%, the highest on record. The unemployment rate fell again, to 3.3%, lower than the UK for the…

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  • Unemployment rate at record low for fifth consecutive month

    14th May 2019 by

    Commenting on this month’s labour market statistics update, released by the ONS for January 2019 to March 2019, Business Minister Jamie Hepburn said: “The Scottish economy and jobs market continues to strengthen. “Scotland’s employment rate is 75.4% and the unemployment rate sits at 3.2%, a new record low and lower than the UK rate of 3.8%. Indeed…

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  • Welcoming International Women’s Day

    8th March 2019 by

    Today is International Women’s Day. It’s also the last day of Scottish Apprenticeship Week. Although very different in scale and theme, both events share an overarching theme: creating and celebrating opportunity. The opportunity I want to focus on during this important day, both as a woman but also as the Digital Economy Minister for Scotland,…

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  • Unemployment below 100,000 for the first time on record

    22nd January 2019 by

    This month’s labour market statistics, released by the ONS for September to November 2018, show unemployment fell below 100,000 in Scotland for the first time on record. Business Minister Jamie Hepburn said: “Despite the huge and continued challenges of Brexit, the Scottish economy remains resilient and our jobs market is strengthening.    “Scotland’s unemployment rate reached…

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  • A Fairer Economy: Enabling Scotland’s skills for the future

    18th January 2019 by

    Delivering a fairer, prosperous economy is a priority for the Scottish Government. And I know that it is a priority for businesses too. To achieve this, we want a fairer labour market and to continue to enhance the skills of our workforce. This year will see us bringing forward a range of measures designed to…

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  • Fairer employment support

    3rd January 2018 by

    A series of events will be held in nine areas across the country, to prepare for the roll out of the new £96 million Fair Start Scotland employability service in April.

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  • Taking a fairer approach to employability

    4th April 2017 by

    Employability Minister Jamie Hepburn discusses Scotland’s new and different approach to helping people with health conditions and disabilities into work.

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  • Report opens door to home-based biz

    21st September 2016 by

    Running a business from home is an increasingly popular option offering freedom and flexibility to work the hours you choose in an environment that you create yourself. Generally the costs will be lower and you can avoid commuting.

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