How to use labour market information (LMI) to help make career decisions

Labour Market Information (LMI) is the name for facts and figures about jobs and employment. This information helps give an overall picture of the past, present and future of work.

The labour market is the term used to describe the amount of people working and looking for work, and the number of jobs available.

As with most statistics, LMI looks at trends and averages. It provides a general guide to jobs and the job market. LMI can help you:

• look at careers in different ways
• consider aspects of jobs which you may not have thought about before
• ask questions

Other things to consider when looking at LMI:

• the labour market changes. Official LMI is the most recent data available, but there is a delay between information being collected and processed
• numbers are often rounded up or down and are not meant to be precise
• LMI is not designed to give you a complete picture or a personal view – there will always be people with different experiences to what the data suggests

LMI can help you understand:

• which jobs are growing or declining – for example, it is predicted that the amount of nurses will rise, but the amount of printers will fall
• what jobs there are in your region and other areas
• how much you might earn
• what a job involves on a day-to-day basis
• what qualifications or skills you might need to do a job
• how your interests and skills are relevant to particular job

Labour market information comes from a range of official surveys and sources. It is used by the government, education providers and businesses to help make future plans.

The Local skills dashboard from Skills England provides employment and skills data by area. You can explore information such as employment rates, number of online job adverts and projected growth occupations, across different parts of the country.

The Office of National Statistics provides a monthly Labour market overview. You can also find, compare and visualise statistics about places in the UK, including indicators relating to employment with its Explore local statistics tool.

Prospects’ job profiles feature LMI on different job roles, including salary information, filtered by sector or A-Z.

Your local area may be different to the region.  This is often the case with cities and rural areas. For example, opportunities in the city of Leeds will be different to those in the Yorkshire Dales, but figures for the region of Yorkshire will include both places.

Also think about population levels. There may be more opportunities in London, but a more crowded and competitive job market. Your chance of getting a job could be greater in a region where there are fewer jobs, but less competition. More jobs, however, could increase your chances of success, so it can work both ways.

Figures relating to future employment are a best guess. Experts consider whether the need for a job is likely to increase, stay around the same or reduce. Factors such as technology and jobs moving overseas (think self-service checkouts or call centres outside the UK) will affect certain job types.

Experts also look at how many people are expected to start and leave work in an industry. Industries with large numbers of workers due to retire may have a greater need for new starters.

If a job is in decline, there may still be opportunities available. But it could be harder to find a job, or the jobs available could become more specialist or need new skills.

Factors such as local area, industry and employer, as well as qualifications, skills and experience, all affect pay levels. Even in the same company, two people with same job can have very different pay.

Also think about the cost of living. There can be a huge difference in your outgoings in different parts of the country. This applies to key costs, such as rent or mortgage payments, through to smaller buys, like a pint of beer.

As a general rule, living costs tend to be higher in London and the south east. But there are expensive places to live elsewhere in the UK. Pay levels for the same job can vary on location, but often don’t change much at all.

In some jobs, it is common to work long-hours. In other jobs it is rare to work above the average.

Your career stage can also affect your average weekly hours. Junior doctors, for example, are known for working long hours. Senior doctors often work more regular hours.

Also think about when you work. Some jobs involve shift work or irregular hours. This can make a big difference to how you feel about your job. It’s worth thinking about how the hours you work will affect you now and in the future.