The UK 'jobs miracle' becoming employers' nightmare

Before becoming pregnant, Lorna Roberts, 26 worked in hospitality. But with the arrival of her baby and  the stresses of restaurant work, she moved to retail.

And Roberts says their hourly average wage has risen as well."I saw an ad outside and I just thought to pop in and ask," she says, stressing how quickly people can change jobs in the present climate.

"Two live-in chef positions available. Excellent rates of pay," read an advert in a kitchen window.

"Hiring. No experience needed," says one of the staff at a fish and chip shop.

UK's ruling Conservative party boasts that it has performed a "jobs miracle" since taking office in 2010 with the national unemployment rate now running at 3.8 percent, the lowest in almost 50 years.

Gary Marx, the proprietor of Keswick's George Hotel, has pledged pay rises that are far in excess of the inflation rate.

In other sectors, airlines such as British Airways and EasyJet have been battling to rehire the staff they made redundant in the thousands at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Although employment rates in both France and Germany "it is still below pre-pandemic levels," UK and US "it is still below pre-pandemic levels," said Wilson of the IES