The number of people out of work in Scotland has increased by 19,000, according to new figures published today.

The figure for the most recent quarter was 124,000 on the Government's preferred measure - up 19,000 up on the previous quarter and 2,000 more than the total for the same quarter last year.

Unemployment as measured by the number of people claiming the jobseeker's allowance also went up in September to 81,800, a rise of 3,100 on the previous month.

The jobseekers' total is 8,100 up on September last year.

Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy said: "Every country in the world is facing real economic challenges.

"The UK has one of the most robust labour markets in the world and the support network of Jobcentre Plus is there to provide assistance to those who may fall out of work.

"Our priority must be to help people back into sustainable employment quickly and we will use every method at our disposal to make that happen."

On today's figures, the number of people in work in Scotland in the most recent quarter was said to be 2.538 million, a fall of 19,000 on the previous quarter and 10,000 down on the same period last year.

The Scottish employment rate of 76% is said to be above that of the UK and "almost all" countries in the EU.

As measured by the claimant count, the unemployment rate 3%.

Calculated on the Government's preferred method, using the International Labour Organisation measure, it saw a quarterly rise of 0.7% to 4.7%, compared to a UK average of 5.7%.

Finance secretary John Swinney said: "These figures are obviously disappointing, but they confirm everything that the Scottish Government has been saying about how the financial crisis is impacting on the real economy.

"There must now be measures to reflate the wider economy."

The Scottish Government had already announced action, including faster investment in affordable housing, but a programme of reflation was also needed from Westminster to boost the wider economy.

That should include relaxing Treasury rules to give the Scottish Government greater access to cash intended for Scotland, he said.

"The labour market in Scotland is still relatively strong, with the ILO unemployment rate significantly below that of the UK and many other advanced economies, and our employment and economic activity rates both stronger than the UK as a whole," said Mr Swinney.

"However, we cannot wait for things to get better - we are redoubling our efforts to accelerate investment and support business and families in Scotland, and the UK Government must now come forward with a reflationary package for the real economy as a matter of urgency."

UK-wide the unemployment increased by 164,000 to its worst level since 1999.

A total of 1.79 million people were out of work in the quarter to August, an unemployment rate of 5.7%, up by 0.5% over the quarter and the highest since the spring of 2000.

The UK quarterly increase in the number of people out of work, including those not eligible for benefit, was the highest since the summer of 1991, when it jumped by 186,000.

The number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance increased by 31,800 in September to 939,900, the eighth consecutive monthly rise and the highest figure for almost two years. The total has now risen by 104,900 over the past year.

Employment levels have also slumped - down by 122,000 in the latest quarter to 29.4 million, the biggest three-monthly fall since 1993.

Latest data from the Office for National Statistics also showed a 46,000 drop in the number of manufacturing jobs to a record low of 2.87 million.

Other figures also confirmed fears that the economic slowdown is now hitting jobs and employment prospects.

A total of 147,000 people were made redundant in the three months to August, an increase of 28,000 on the previous quarter.

Meanwhile the number of people classed as economically inactive, including people looking after a relative, on long-term sick leave or who have given up seeking work, rose by 16,000 in the latest period to 7.89 million, more than 20% of the working age population.

The number of unemployed men increased by 111,000 to over a million in the three months to August, while for women the figure rose by 52,000 to 732,000.

The figures also revealed that the number of people out of work for more than a year has increased by 35,000 to 440,000.

Unemployment among 18 to 24-year-olds was 559,000, up by 56,000 from the three months to May.

Average earnings increased by 3.4% in the year to August, down by 0.1% on the previous month.

Mr Brown refused to comment on the unemployment figures published today, but insisted: "We will do everything we can to help create jobs and help people maintain jobs in the British economy.