The latest BRES data reveals that just under 40 percent of cities experienced a net increase in total jobs from 2009 to 2010 indicating that the road to recovery in cities is a bumpy one. Across Great Britain as a whole there was a slight contraction in net jobs growth of 0.5 percent.
Cities like Crawley, Hastings and Worthing experienced a net increase in jobs of over three percent between 2009 and 2010. However, places like Swindon, Rochdale and Glasgow continued to lose private sector jobs. From our past research in publications like Private Sector Cities, it is interesting to see that Hastings has experienced strong jobs growth and this is something we will look into in more detail in future research.
Jobs growth in the public sector shows a slightly different story however. Two thirds of cities experienced a net gain in public sector jobs. Burnley, for instance, saw a net increase in its public sector jobs base of 12 percent. That said, some cities lost public sector jobs. Swindon for example experienced a contraction in its public sector jobs base of 11 percent from 2009 to 2010.
This private and public sector jobs data highlights the continuing challenge Government and cities face. Creating conditions which support private sector job creation in cities will be key as job losses in the public sector really begin to bite.
