"This article considers labour market performance from April 2008 to September 2009, covering eighteen months of the recent recession, for the UK as a whole, the devolved countries of the UK and Government Office Regions within England. The main findings are:•employment rates have fallen for the UK and across the country, with Northern Ireland and Wales having the largest falls•the number of jobs in the UK has fallen, with ‘Manufacturing' and ‘Construction' industries having the largest percentage falls•redundancy levels increased through the recession to a peak in the three months to March 2009, before falling over the next six months to September 2009•unemployment and the claimant count have increased in all regions•the inactivity rate has increased slightly in the UK, but there are large variations in changes in inactivity across the UK•since the onset of the current recession, there has been a sharp increase in the flow of individuals from employment to unemployment,•earnings growth has been relatively weak in comparison with periods before the recession"

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