The number of people in the UK on zero-hours contracts in their main job during the period from April to June has fallen slightly compared to last year, according to the latest figures from the Office of National Statistics.

Estimates from ONS’s Labour Force Survey show that the number of people employed on zero-hours contracts in their main job, during April to June 2017 was 883,000, representing 2.8% of all people in employment. This is 2.2% lower than the reported figure from the same period in 2016 (903,000 or 2.9% of people in employment).

ONS adds that this fall in the number of people reporting to the LFS that they were on a zero-hours contract breaks the upward trend that was observed since 2011.

“The upward trend that we saw between 2011 and 2016 was likely to have been affected by greater awareness and recognition of the term zero-hours contract,” the ONS stated.

Zero-hours contracts have come under fire recently from the Labour Party as well as trade unions and campaign groups and their use from companies such as Sports Direct, McDonald’s and their use in the Glastonbury Festival have also been criticised. The Taylor Review was commissioned following outcry over zero-hours contracts and recommended a number of changes but the report did not call for the end of zero-hours conracts.

According to the ONS, people on zero-hours contracts are more likely to be young, part-time, women or in full-time education when compared with other people in employment. On average, someone on a zero-hours contract usually works 26 hours a week. Just over a quarter of people (26.6%) on a zero-hours contract want more hours, with most wanting them in their current job, as opposed to a different job which offers more hours. In comparison, 7.2% of other people in employment wanted more hours.

A survey of businesses in May published in the ONS indicated that there were 1.4 million contracts that did not guarantee a minimum number of hours, where work had actually been carried out under those contracts. This represented 5% of all employment contracts. The equivalent figures for May 2016 were 1.7 million and 5%.