Another forty thousand Scots are set to become unemployed next year according to a leading think tank.

Fraser of Allander Institute has predicted that Scotland’s economy won’t grow in 2010, despite the UK’s economic recovery already underway.

While businesses remain optimistic that the recession is coming to an end, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has warned that Britain’s unemployment figures could rise to nearly 10% of the population by 2011.

With more job losses predicted, the situation will become more difficult for those already looking for work.

Edinburgh Napier News spoke to Zia Jaimson, 24 who was made redundant 5 months ago and is still struggling to find a job. “I’ve registered with agencies, handed CV’s in and I go to about 3 interviews a month but it’s so hard to get work because there is so much competition and people with more experience than me going for the same job.”

Miss Jaimson worked in IT for the computing company Dell for 3 years and found out in June this year that her position no longer existed. “By law Dell had to try to re-locate me within the company but the job they offered me was so far out of my specialism that I couldn’t do it. Four of my colleagues were also laid off at the same time and none of them have found work yet either.

“I was given two months redundancy money which I have managed to last up until now but I need to find work as soon as possible.”

While job-hunting in central Edinburgh, Miss Jaimson told Edinburgh Napier News that she is doing part-time training to become a make-up consultant, to improve her chances of finding a job.

Speaking to the Daily Express, Scottish Tory Finance Spokesman, Derek Brownlee said, “Scotland has suffered hardest from Labour’s debt mountain, Labour’s jobs crisis and Labour’s recession.

“The fact remains that we were first in and last out of this downturn, and Scottish unemployment has rocketed by 50 per cent over the past year.”