Jobs and work

Fact checks related to the employment rate, unemployment, pensions and the gender pay gap

10 March 2023

The UK doesn’t have more job vacancies than unemployed people

A column by former work and pensions secretary Chloe Smith was corrected after we contacted the MP about the error.

Read more…
The UK doesn’t have more job vacancies than unemployed people
24 February 2023

Newspapers and health minister understate junior doctors’ pay demand

Junior doctors are asking for a pay rise of about 35%—not 26%, which is how much their union says their pay has fallen by since 2008-9.

Read more…
Newspapers and health minister understate junior doctors’ pay demand
27 January 2023

Jeff Bezos couldn’t give every Amazon worker £90,000

A bonus suggested by the Labour MP Zarah Sultana would cost more than Mr Bezos’s reported total wealth, let alone any wealth he gained during the pandemic.

Read more…
Jeff Bezos couldn’t give every Amazon worker £90,000
16 December 2022

Health minister’s claims on nurse pay fact checked

Maria Caulfield MP made a number of claims about how much nurse pay increases would cost during multiple media appearances.

Read more…
Health minister’s claims on nurse pay fact checked
14 December 2022

Unemployment in the UK is currently low by historic standards

The shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves claimed that Britain has “high unemployment” after 12 years of Conservative government. But by historic standards, the unemployment rate is currently very low.

Read more…
Unemployment in the UK is currently low by historic standards
13 December 2022

Survey didn't find one in ten young people plan ‘never’ to work

The figure used by Rod Liddle in a Sun column only describes the percentage of those who are already not working. The true proportion is more like one in 25.

Read more…
Survey didn't find one in ten young people plan ‘never’ to work
25 November 2022

Steve Barclay’s figure for new nurses’ pay includes extra earnings

The health secretary said that a new nurse will typically earn over £31,000 a year on current pay. This is an estimate that includes extra earnings such as overtime. Basic …

Read more…
Steve Barclay’s figure for new nurses’ pay includes extra earnings
25 November 2022

How much of the rise in ‘economic inactivity’ is due to long Covid?

A BBC news bulletin claimed a recent rise in the number of people who are neither working nor looking for work is “largely because of long Covid”. But there are …

Read more…
How much of the rise in ‘economic inactivity’ is due to long Covid?
14 September 2022

The government hasn’t proposed banning unions

Digitally manipulated images designed to look like the government website have been shared hundreds of times online.

Read more…
The government hasn’t proposed banning unions
19 August 2022

Real wages fall sharply—but not by ‘record’ amount when using best measure

When you look at people’s total pay—including bonuses—the most recent fall in real wages is not a record, although it is very large.

Read more…
Real wages fall sharply—but not by ‘record’ amount when using best measure

Full Fact fights bad information

Bad information ruins lives. It promotes hate, damages people’s health, and hurts democracy. You deserve better.