The UK unemployment rate fell to 4.7% for the three-month period ending January 2017 from 5.1% last year, marking the lowest level since 1975, according to figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

The figures from ONS also showed that the number of temporary workers in the UK was 1.60 million, down from 1.65 million in the same period last year.

The employment rate (the proportion of people aged from 16 to 64 who were in work) was 74.6%. Furthermore, there were 23.34 million people working full-time, 305,000 more than for a year earlier. There were 8.52 million people working part-time, 10,000 more than for a year earlier.

Between the 3 months to January 2016 and the 3 months to January 2017, in nominal terms, total pay increased by 2.2%. Meanwhile, there were 757,000 job vacancies for the 3 months to February 2017. This was little changed compared with a year earlier.

For December 2016, 17.1% of people in employment worked in the public sector and the remaining 82.9% worked in the private sector.

Meanwhile, total hours worked per week were 1.03 billion for the 3 months to January 2017. This was 14.2 million more than for a year earlier.

“The UK jobs market has broken records again, with the employment rate reaching 74.6%, Recruitment & Employment Confederation chief executive Kevin Green said. “The number of people entering work has accelerated, with 92,000 more jobs created between November and January. Unemployment is at the lowest since the mid-seventies.”

“Despite pay growth slowing to 2.2%, REC data shows that starting salaries have risen in the first quarter of 2017,” Green said. “Employers are boosting pay offers to compete for the limited talent available. Whilst this is good news for individuals looking to move jobs, hirers are concerned about how they can sustain higher starting salaries – there’s only so much they can do to find people to fill jobs.”

“We urge the government to be mindful of the skills shortage during the upcoming Brexit negotiations,” Green said. “Securing the rights of EU workers in the UK should be the number one priority. Employers in healthcare, construction, and agriculture especially are heavily reliant on EU nationals - we must reassure these people about their future in the UK.”