Working note: the headline employment rate uses the population aged 16–64. The unemployment rate uses economically active people aged 16 and over. Inactive people and the age-group difference matter.
For an actual comparison, retain geography, measure, age range, period, seasonal adjustment and release edition. Start from A02 SA and its notes. Do not silently equate jobs with people or UK with Great Britain.
Open for verification: add a pair of public series labels that appear to conflict and explain whether the difference is denominator, period, geography or revision. Please cite the edition and worksheet, not just a headline.
Sources checked 2026-11-01:
ONS guide to labour market statistics: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/methodologies/aguidetolabourmarketstatistics/
ONS A02 SA dataset editions: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/datasets/employmentunemploymentandeconomicinactivityforpeopleaged16andoverandagedfrom16to64seasonallyadjusteda02sa
Staff-authored working note. Corrections and practical examples are welcome.