The UK Labour government has unveiled its Get Britain Working white paper, outlining its first major initiative to achieve an 80% employment rate.

The white paper was previously announced in the UK’s Budget in October.

Get Britain Working, backed by £240 million in funding, seeks to address the root causes of unemployment and inactivity while improving the integration of health, skills, and employment support tailored to the unique needs of local communities.

According to the government, this includes tackling ill health as the biggest driver of inactivity by fixing the NHS. This would comprise deploying extra staff to cut waiting lists in areas of high inactivity, expanding access to mental health support, as well as a greater focus on prevention to stop people from becoming ill in the first place.

The UK’s Jobcentre system will be revamped into a new national jobs and careers service, shifting its focus from managing benefit claims to supporting people’s skills and career development. Mayors and councils will also be given greater authority to align local work, health, and skills support to meet the needs of their communities, the white paper stated.

This will be kickstarted by £55 million of investment. Jobcentres will have improved digital offerings with the Department for Work and Pensions using the latest technologies and AI to provide up-to-date information on jobs, skills and other support and to free up work coach time.

Staff at Jobcentres will have more flexibility to offer a more personalised service to jobseekers, and new coaching academies will also be set up to upskill Jobcentre staff.

Meanwhile, the government is also providing a new ‘youth guarantee’ so that young job seekers have access to education or training to help them find a job. It is also transforming the Apprenticeship Levy in England into a more flexible Growth and Skills Levy backed by £40 million to expand opportunities for young people to develop skills and get into work.

Every 18-to-21-year-old in England will have access to an apprenticeship, quality training and education opportunities or help to find a job under a new ‘Youth Guarantee’, the white paper noted.

An independent review will also be launched into how employers can be better supported to employ people with disabilities and health conditions and to keep them in the workplace.

The government will also provide £115 million in funding next year to enable local areas across England and Wales to deliver a new supported employment programme called Connect to Work scheme.

Connect to Work provides voluntary employment offers to people with disabilities, health conditions or complex barriers to work and will support up to 100,000 people a year at full rollout as the first tranche of money from a new Get Britain Working Fund.

The government will also launch an independent review to examine how UK employers can foster healthier and more inclusive workplaces. Additionally, it plans to introduce measures to reform the health and disability benefits system, aiming to better support individuals in entering and staying in work while addressing the rising benefits bill.

According to the white paper, the government will launch a consultation in the spring as part of a commitment to put the views and voices of disabled people at the heart of any policy changes that directly affect them.

“The driving purpose behind this new approach is to enable everyone to have the opportunity of secure, rewarding and fulfilling work. Today’s White Paper delivers the fundamental reforms needed to fix the foundations, break down barriers to opportunity, particularly for young people and improve living standards,” the white paper stated.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in the white paper, “We’re overhauling Jobcentres to make them fit for the modern age. We’re giving young people the skills and opportunities they need to prepare them for the jobs of the future. We’re fixing the NHS so people get the treatment and mental health support they desperately need to be able to get back to work. We’re working with businesses and employers to better support people with disabilities and health conditions to stay and progress in work, and it doesn’t stop there.”

“Our reforms put an end to the culture of blaming and shaming people who, for too long, haven’t been getting the support they need to get back to work. Helping people into decent, well-paid jobs and giving our children and young people the best start in life - that’s our plan to put more money in people’s pockets, unlock growth and make people better off,” Starmer added.

Liz Kendall, Secretary of State and a member of parliament, added, “The Get Britain Working White Paper shows that this government stands unashamedly for work. We will make sure everyone, regardless of their background, age, ethnicity, health, disability, or postcode, can benefit from the dignity and purpose work can bring,” We can build a healthier, wealthier nation – driving up employment and opportunity, skills and productivity – while driving down the benefit bill.”

On the Youth Guarantee, Kendall told BBC News that young people who did not accept training offers would lose benefits.

Shazia Ejaz, Recruitment and Employment Confederation Director of Campaigns and Research, said in a press release, “There are good intentions in the government’s white paper and the policy announcements are heading in the right direction especially in terms of joining up services around employment with skills and careers advice. The support around mental health as a path to tackling inactivity is crucial. Also welcome is the recognition that one size doesn’t fit all and that mayoral regions are well placed to look at how to address barriers to employment and work with local employers to build an approach that works for everyone.”

Ejaz continued, “Factoring in the importance of flexible work must not be overlooked when the government thinks about how to meet the employment target. Temporary work provides a valuable way into work and offers opportunities to train, learn new skills and develop the soft skills employers want to see. Recruiters will be keen to work with a reformed JobCentre Plus offer which makes it easier for them and employers more generally to engage with JobCentre.”

“Addressing the challenges of the NHS and tackling economic inactivity driven by ill health are rightly front and centre in the white paper and are inherently linked,” Ejaz said. “To reduce waiting lists and support workforce participation we need a better workforce strategy for the NHS.”

The white paper highlighted that almost one and a half million people are unemployed, over nine million people are inactive, and a record 2.8 million people are out of work due to long-term sickness. It also noted that one in eight young people are not in education, employment or training, and nine million adults lack the essential skills they need to get on in work.