UNEMPLOYMENT in Kent and Medway soared by 600 last month.

In Medway, the number of people out of work and claiming benefit went up by 134 to 3,310, or 3.2% of the workforce.

A further 466 people signed on in the rest of Kent, raising the combined total to 17,835 (2.4%)

The local pattern was repeated across the country, with the number of claimants rising 3,200 to 963,500 (3.2%).

This was blamed on another huge cut in manufacturing jobs.

The Government-preferred International Labour Organisation figure, which includes people not eligible for benefit, increased by 15,000 to 1,522,000 in September to November compared with the previous quarter.

Another 146,000 manufacturing jobs were axed in the three months to November, taking the total number of jobs in the sector to a record low of 3.7 million.

Virtually all manufacturing industries cut jobs in the past few months, especially electrical and optical equipment, textiles, leather and clothing and mineral and metal products.

Kent is already suffering from the decline in manufacturing employment. Syngenta is closing its plant at Yalding and car parts group Unipart recently announced the closure of its Ketlon machining business in Paddock Wood.

With the exception of Gravesham, where 26 people came off the dole, all districts in Kent saw a rise in the jobless total.

Swale’s went up by 62, Maidstone’s by 28, Tonbridge and Malling’s by 34 and Dartford’s by 29.

On the pay front, average earnings increased by 4.2% in the year to November, down by 0.1% on the previous month.

Earnings growth in the public sector continued to outpace rises in private firms at 5.4% compared with 3.9%, although both figures were down from the previous month.

The number of people in jobs has also increased in recent months despite rising unemployment. The employment level was 28.2 million in the quarter to November, an increase of 65,000 over the three months.

The claimant count and International Labour Organisation (ILO) figures have both increased for three months in a row, the first time that has happened for almost 10 years. The claimant count is now at its highest level since May last year.

Other figures released today showed that 193,000 people were made redundant last autumn, the highest number for three years. Almost half those made redundant had found another job within three months.

The ILO unemployment rate in the UK remains lower than the European average.

Figures for Medway and Kent on December 13, 2001: Kent/Medway combined; 17,835 (up 600); Kent, 14,525 (up 466); Medway, 3,310 (up 134); Ashford, 825 (up 52); Canterbury, 1,329 (up 37); Dartford, 756 (up 29); Dover, 1,452 (up 60); Gravesham, 1,366 (down 26); Maidstone, 1,022 (up 68); Sevenoaks, 626 (up 37); Shepway, 1,388 (up 57); Swale, 1,722 (up 62); Thanet, 2,808 (up 28); Tonbridge and Malling, 647 (up 34); Tunbridge Wells, 584 (up 28).