Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index, October 2024

Small business employment: down by 1,400 jobs

Employment at UK small businesses with one to nine employees decreased by 1,400 jobs in September compared to August. These businesses now employ 4,280,200 people—a 0.03% decrease month-over-month. 

As the chart below shows, small business employment is down by 10,000 jobs compared to September 2023 (an annual decrease of 0.23%).

Job vacancies (as shown in the “job vacancies” tabs in the chart above) at small businesses in the UK experienced declines in September as well, decreasing by 0.08% with 100 fewer open positions. Currently, there are 136,900 vacancies at small businesses in the UK.

Employment by sector: down in all but three sectors

In September, small business employment decreased in 10 of the 13 sectors covered by the Index. The manufacturing sector (SIC C) had the fastest monthly decrease, contracting by 0.16%, with 400 fewer jobs. 

In the table below, use the green buttons to see the number of jobs or open positions by sector.

Small business job vacancies decreased in eight of the 13 sectors, falling fastest in construction (SIC F) with a monthly decline of 1.71%. For the second month in a row, administrative and support services (SIC N) had the fastest growth in open positions, increasing by 1.04% in September.

Employment by nation and region: most regions saw declines in employment and job vacancies

Small business employment decreased in all four UK nations in September—falling fastest in Wales, with a monthly decline of 0.17%, equivalent to 300 fewer jobs. Within England, employment decreased in six of the nine regions—falling fastest in North East England, with a monthly decline of 0.26%, equivalent to 300 fewer jobs. The East of England had the largest and fastest employment growth, adding 300 jobs, with a monthly increase of 0.06%.

Use the green buttons on the map below to see the number of jobs or open positions at small businesses by nation and region.

Job vacancies present more of a mixed bag. In September, vacancies increased in two of the four UK nations—growing the fastest in Northern Ireland, with a monthly growth rate of 1.65%. On the other end, vacancies contracted the fastest in Wales, with a monthly decrease of 0.35%. 

Within England, job vacancies decreased in six of the nine regions. Vacancies decreased the fastest in South East England, declining by 0.41% month-over-month, and increased the fastest in North East England, with a monthly growth rate of 0.74%.

More information

Get all the details from the interactive Small Business Index dashboard.

Media inquiries

Media contact details for QuickBooks in the UK can be found here on the QuickBooks UK website.

USA Index

The Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index is also published monthly in the US. Get the latest small business employment insights for the US here.

Canada Index

The Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index is also published monthly in Canada. Get the latest small business employment insights for Canada here.

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