What is Labour Market Information

Labour Market Information or LMI refers to any relevant information about the current state of the jobs market.
This can include information like:

· The industries and businesses in the area that we live as well as in the country.
· The types of jobs that exist and what they involve.
· How many of those jobs there are.
· Typical rates of pay.
· The skills that are currently or will be in high demand.
· The opportunities available to progress within chosen fields.

LMI can be both quantitative (related to numbers), and qualitative (information and experiences that can be observed but not measured). Qualitative LMI is usually based on studies and on data such as the Census, while qualitative LMI is based on interviews, anecdotes, press reports, networks, and so on.

Why is it useful?

Even adults can find navigating the world of work a little complex. Some adults feel they have just settled into the job that they felt was available at the time or fell into a role “by accident”.

How can you use it as a young person?

If you’re looking for a job, or will be soon, learning about Labour Market Information will help you to understand what opportunities are out there and how you can take advantage of them. Once you have found a course or a job LMI can give you some insight into how you might be able to grow within that and what opportunities to advance might be available to you as well as how to go about it.

Based on LMI, you can decide things like:

· Are there job opportunities for me where I live, or do I need to consider relocating for the career I want?
· Does the pay for my dream career align with how much I’d like to earn? If not, am I okay with that?
· How long will it take me to rise through the ranks in my career to my desired position, and am I willing to do the work to get there?
· How competitive is my industry? Do I have a backup plan if it doesn’t work out in the way I want it to?
· Is college, university, an apprenticeship, or working my way up from an entry level job the right path for me?

Labour Market Tools/ Useful Websites

It is important to begin the research process surrounding this as soon as possible so you can make an informed choice.

Career Planning – There are a number of websites and tools you can use that you can find on our Padlet

https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/explore-careers – The national careers service website also over 800 job profiles that young people and adults can access which gives you Information on salaries, hours, what you will do on the job and what route you need to take to get into it.

https://icould.com/explore/ – A website with hundreds of videos and jobs profiles to explore. LMI is given on each job including a number of statistics including pay, growth and qualifications needed.

It is also important to think about the future of work within our area when picking your courses, and also what jobs are likely to be out there. Further information can be found here – Labour market overview, UK – Office for National Statistics