THERE are just 138 long-term unemployed adults in Southampton, according to latest government figures.

The jobs boom is driving up salaries and conditions as companies vie to attract talented staff.

Numbers of long-term unemployed in the city have fallen by an incredible 92 per cent since 1997, down from more than 1,000, the Office of National Statistics reveals.

Seven years ago the total unemployed in the city stood at 6,792, but that figure has fallen to 3,018.

Youth unemployment, too, is tumbling - down from 676 young jobless in Southampton in 1997 to 136 now.

But Matthew Davis, director of Hampshire recruitment consultancy Guildsrealm, said it was bad news for employers.

"Businesses are finding there's a massive skills shortage," he said. "There is an acute war for talent and companies are competing for a smaller and smaller share of the labour pool. It is driving salaries up and conditions as well, especially at the higher end.It is now a candidate's market. If you want a job, you now have the pick of them."

Nationally, there are fewer people looking for jobs than at any time since 1975, with 876,000 claiming unemployment benefit. It's a far cry from the dark days of the 80s and early 90s when the dole queue hit three million.

Southampton Itchen MP John Denham welcomed news of the figures, saying: "A decade ago it seemed like there would always be three million unemployed. People believed it was impossible to end mass unemployment. Yet today we have the lowest level of unemployment for a generation.

"We need to secure this economic stability for a generation. We don't want to return to the depths of recession and unemployment we saw over the last three decades.

"We'll never return to the 'one job for life' culture of 30 years ago, but by making sure workers have skills, that there is a growing economy and supporting people's desire for career growth, we can keep employment high."