The jobs market shows “signs of recovery”, as unemployment stood at 4.7% in the three months to April, down from 4.8%, says the Office for National Statistics today.

It adds the number of payrolled employees rose for the sixth month in a row to 28.5 million, up by 197,000 in May 2021.

This is 553,000 below levels seen before the pandemic hit in March last year.

The official data body says: “The latest figures suggest that the jobs market is showing signs of recovery.”

However, it adds the largest falls in payroll employment have been in the accommodation and food services sector, people aged under 25 years, and people living in London.

The ONS says: “These three groups have also seen the largest monthly increases but are still well below pre-pandemic levels.”

The official body says the number of job vacancies from March to May was 758,000, around 27,000 below pre-pandemic levels.

There are still 3.4m furloughed jobs, according to HMRC data released earlier this month.

The housing industry is braced against the prospect that thousands of mortgage holders will emerge from government furlough schemes in September as vulnerable clients following the health crisis.

Somerset-based HR firm, Rowan Consulting founder Karen Watkins says: “As a business that supports a number of companies with employees still on furlough, the end of the government’s support scheme is the elephant in the room that some businesses are not yet ready to face.”

However, Belper-based Peak Mortgages and Protection managing director Rhys Schofield adds: “The end of furlough may actually be good for business as staff move from Zombie firms to those that have adapted to the brave new world and are ready to grow. The end of furlough will release people into a labour market crying out for new recruits.”