On Wednesday, rail and bus firm National Express said it would cut up to 750 jobs as it acted to save costs.
"The latest unemployment figures are bleak and herald a return to the dark days of mass joblessness we hoped had gone forever, " said Dr John Philpott, chief economist at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
The trades union umbrella body the TUC has predicted two million people will be out of work by Christmas, and says half a million people will be facing their second Christmas out of work.
It is calling for Jobseeker's Allowance to be raised from £60.50 to £75 a week.
"These people are not scroungers. They are blameless victims of a worldwide economic downturn and deserve to be treated as such," said TUC general secretary Brendan Barber.
Employment Minister Tony McNulty says unemployment figures were 'disappointing'
"As well as more support to get back into work, unemployed people need more immediate financial support to help them cope with life on the dole."
Managers are expected to be hit hard by job cuts, with the Management Consultancies Association forecasting up to 360,000 will lose their jobs by 2010.
The Prince's Trust has also warned that young people have so far borne the brunt of job losses.
It said that two out of five people who became unemployed in the past three months were under the age of 25.
The government is to unveil a new training scheme for the unemployed.
It has allocated £158m to help those who have been made redundant develop new skills.
The fund is supposed to make it easier for workers to get advice on training and support employers who want to improve the skills of their staff.
This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.