Employment, unemployment and economic activity Coventry working age population by gender Source: Annual Population Survey, Office for National Statistics

Interpreting the data The data presented in the following charts and discussed in the related commentary are estimates taken from responses from working age Coventry residents to the national ‘Annual Population Survey’ conducted by the Office for National Statistics. They are taken from five surveys conducted on a rolling annual basis from April 2007 – March 2008 to April March 2012, each of the five survey results were taken from between 1,100 and 1,200 working age respondents living in Coventry. The true proportions amongst all working age Coventry residents (of whom there are about 105,000 males and 102,000 females in total) lie within a certain margin of error (a ‘confidence interval’) either side of the proportions found in the survey results. Due to this, the extent to which the survey results have changed between and (and even the fact that they have changed at all) may not accurately represent real changes in the proportions who are unemployed, employed and economically active amongst all working age residents of Coventry. Statistical tests* were conducted on the survey data to determine whether we can robustly conclude that the difference between the results from the and surveys are a true reflection of the real story amongst all working age residents or whether they could be due to the sample of people who were surveyed at that time. The results of the tests are discussed briefly in the commentary. * The ‘two proportion Z test’.

Source: Annual Population Survey, Office for National Statistics. Definitions: In employment – in paid work; full time or part time, employed or self employed. Unemployed – the definition set out by the International Labour Organisation. Not in employment and actively seeking employment (has sought work in the last four weeks). The unemployment rate is the ratio of unemployed to employed – the % of economically active working age residents who are unemployed. Essentially, the unemployment rate measures the number of unemployed people as a proportion of all those who want to work (including those already in employment). Economically active – either in employment or unemployed. Economically inactive – not economically active. Not in employment and not actively seeking employment. Take me to chart overview

Employment, unemployment and economic activity by gender – FY on FY data Employment, unemployment and economic activity by gender - Percentage point difference over time (FY – FY) Take me to definitions

What is this telling me? Take me home In March 2012 the unemployment rate (a 12 month average) amongst all working age ( ) residents of Coventry was 9.5% compared to the overall rate for England of 8.2%. That is, 9.5% of economically active residents were out of work and actively seeking work. Between 2008 and 2012 the unemployment rate amongst all residents aged 16 – 64 increased from 7.2% to 9.5%. Between and the unemployment rate amongst men increased by an estimated 4 percentage points from 7% to 11%. This increase in male survey respondents saying they are unemployed is a statistically significant increase, it implies that unemployment has increased in general amongst all male residents. The survey results suggest that unemployment amongst women has not changed notably. It should be noted that this method of measuring unemployment levels, the official method of surveying a sample of the working age population, is very different from using the Jobseeker’s Allowance claimant count. Take me back to the data

What is this telling me? Take me home In 2008 the survey results suggested unemployment rates amongst men and women living in Coventry were similar; the survey results in give a good indication that the male unemployment rate is now higher after the recession. The survey results show that males experienced an increase in unemployment (statistically significant) in the first two years after the recession hit. The results suggest that females have experienced increases in unemployment only in the last two years. Take me back to the data

What is this telling me? Take me home In March 2012 the employment rate (a 12 month average) amongst all working age ( ) residents of Coventry was 64% compared to the overall rate for England of 70%. That is, 64% of all working age residents were in employment, whether that be full time or part time, as an employee or self employed. Between and the employment rate amongst all residents aged 16 – 64 fell from 70% to 64%. The survey results estimate that men experienced a fall in employment rate by about 8 percentage points from 76% in March 2008 to 68% in March For women the results estimate that the employment rate fell by about 5 percentage points from 64% to 59%. Other results from this survey give an indication that there was a similar reduction in public sector employment amongst men and women and, if there was greater reduction in employment amongst men, this was due to a greater reduction in private sector employment amongst men compared to women. Take me back to the data

What is this telling me? Take me home Since before the recession took effect in 2008 women from Coventry have experienced lower rates of employment compared to male residents. While the survey results suggest that men have suffered a greater reduction in employment between and , there are still proportionally fewer (statistically significant) women in employment. The 8 percentage point reduction in the male employment rate is sufficiently large to show a statistically significant fall – we can conclude that employment has fallen amongst all male residents. The 5 point fall in the female employment rate is not quite sufficiently large to robustly conclude that the employment rate amongst all female residents has generally fallen. However, the difference in the fall in the survey results for employment between male and female Coventry residents is relatively small, 3 percentage points. There is some evidence, while not strong, that the male residents have experienced a greater fall in employment. Both men and women experienced a reduction in employment between and and between 2009 – 10 and 2011 – 12. Take me back to the data

What is this telling me? Take me home In March 2012 the economic activity rate (a 12 month average) amongst all working age ( ) residents of Coventry was 70% compared to the overall rate for England of 77%. That is, 70% of all working age residents were economically active, either in employment or actively looking for work. Between 2008 and 2012 the economic activity rate amongst all residents aged 16 – 64 fell from 76% to 70%. Survey results suggest that male and female Coventry residents have both reduced their rates of economic activity and by a similar amount. The survey results estimate that the economic activity rate has fallen for men from 82% in to 76% in and for women from 69% to 64%. Take me back to the data

What is this telling me? Take me home Women in Coventry, and in general nationally, have historically had lower rates of economic activity than men. In , before the recession affected employment opportunities in Coventry, about 69% of working age female residents of the city were economically active compared to a rate of 82% amongst males. This is a statistically significant difference. Responses to the Annual Population Survey show many more women than men are economically inactive because they are looking after their family or home or because they are retired. The results indicate that an increase in the number of women looking after their family or home constitutes most of the increase in inactivity amongst women between and , there was also an increase in female inactive students. A wider of variety of explanations constituted the increase in inactivity amongst men. The APS gives estimates that activity rates have fallen amongst both men and women in the last four years in Coventry. Nationally however activity rates have not fallen. The estimates suggest that economic activity rates amongst men have fallen only in the last two years whereas activity rates amongst women fell more steadily over the last four years. Take me back to the data