LATEST figures show that Worcestershire has the highest employment rate in the West Midlands and is above the national average.

Some 79 per cent of people at working age in Worcestershire have a job, compared with 74 per cent nationally.

There are 259,000 people in the county able to work - a figure also higher than any other in the West Midlands.

Worcestershire's employment record beat second placed Warwickshire, which had a rate of 78.5 per cent, and Herefordshire, which had a rate of 78.2 per cent.

The news has been hailed as "great for Worcestershire" by the bosses at the Chamber of Commerce.

Chris Harvey, head of policy and representation, said: "It's very good news, and I think that there are two reasons for this figure.

"Firstly, we've always has a very low level of unemployment in the county - it does vary from district to district but it's always been lower than the national average.

"Secondly, a number of people in the county who are of working age but have not been seeking work, because they are financially comfortable, have been drawn back into the workforce.

"These people tend to have a lot of skills and have been very useful to the economy - they have really contributed to Worcestershire.

"The figures are very good, but I also think there is room for it to be even higher.

"There are still people that we could attract back into the workforce in Worcestershire - those financially comfortable people who either haven't felt the need to go back to work, or haven't found something that entices them back yet.

"It's those people we need to draw back in.

"Overall, these figures are great news for Worcestershire."

The latest employment figures, provided by the union GMB, puts Sandwell bottom of the West Midlands league table with a 66 per cent employment rate. Staffordshire and Dudley finished in fourth and fifth place with employment rates of 77.7 per cent and 70 per cent respectively.