UNEMPLOYMENT in Scotland went up by more than 41,000 in recent months, figures revealed today.
The increase takes the jobless total to 176,000.
The number of people claiming the jobseeker's allowance has risen by more than 3,500 in the space of a month to 125,000, the figures showed.
The jobless total for the whole of the UK increased by 232,000 in the three months to April to reach 2.26 million, a 12-year high.
Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy admitted: "These latest figures are a real blow and reflect the job consequences of the global economic problems."
He went on: "Scotland has shown a greater resilience to rises in unemployment than elsewhere in the UK, but today's figures again show the seriousness of the situation.
"The UK Government will do everything possible to support jobs in the economy and to help people who have lost their jobs get back into work."
And the total has risen by nearly 54,000 since last May.
On the wider measure, unemployment rose by 41,000 to 176,000 – 61,000 higher than a year ago.
On this measure, unemployment is now running at 6.6%, up 1.5% on the previous quarter.
Enterprise Minister Jim Mather said Scotland still had lower unemployment than the UK average, and a lower level of economic inactivity.
"Today's figures underline the importance of Scottish Government action to keep people in work or help workers regain employment," he said.
"The recession clearly continues to bite hard, and we remain steadfast in our efforts to position Scotland's economy for a strong recovery, and attract investors to create new jobs.
"But the UK Government must recognise that its proposed £500 million cuts in Scottish spending next year threatens 9,000 Scottish jobs – exactly the wrong course of action in these challenging times."
