You are in: Home > Employment > Employment Reports > ABI

Analysis of the ABI Employment Figures for Birmingham 1991-2005

Published: February 2007

This report draws on data from the Annual Business Inquiry (ABI), which is the official source of information for trends in employment by economic sectors.

General Employment Trends from 1991 to 2005

The total of all employment located within Birmingham’s boundaries in 2005 was only 3.6% (or 17,000) higher than in 1991. This compares to a UK increase of 17.8%. This growth in employment was made up of a 24.6% increase in service sector employment (up 81,800), countered by a 52% fall in local manufacturing employment (down 61,300 when the closure of MG-Rover at Longbridge is included). In addition there were also falls in the energy & water and construction sectors.

Sectoral Employment Trends Between 1991 and 2005

There was a significant shift in the distribution of employment between sectors in Birmingham from 1991 to 2005. Employment in the city is becoming increasingly service based, and even taking account of productivity increases in manufacturing the nature of economic output in Birmingham is also becoming more services dependent. Manufacturing’s 11.5% share of employment in Birmingham in 2005 is small compared to its share of 44% recorded in 1978.

The largest proportional falls in employment have been in the Energy & Water sectors and Manufacturing. The largest proportional increases between 1991 and 2005 have been in Financial & Business Services and in Other Services.

In the 1980’s and 1990’s Birmingham’s service sector employment was mostly driven by growth in the Financial & Business services sector. During the 2000’s this source of jobs growth has slowed down and the increase in employment in the public sector has taken up the slack. A much more detailed analysis of employment change by sector and sub-sector can be found in the full report that can be downloaded from the top right of this web page.

Employment Change in Birmingham by Gender and Job Tenure

The period 1991 to 2005 saw the continuation of certain long-term employment trends in relation to gender and job tenure. Men’s employment in the city fell by over 9,100 (down 3.6%), whilst women’s employment increased by nearly 29,000 (up 13.1%). As a result of these changes men’s share of the employment based in Birmingham declined from 53.6% to 49.6% and the women’s share increased from 46.4% to 50.4%.

A second important development is the decline in full-time employment, which is something concentrated amongst men. Men’s full-time employment fell by nearly 28,600 whilst that for women increased by a modest 1,500. In 1991 77.7% of local employment was full-time but by 2005 this had fallen to 69.1%. Over the same period, part-time employment increased by nearly 46,900.