Print workers who lose their jobs are now facing months without re-employment where they would previously have found work "within weeks", according to George Thompson of Harrison Scott.
Thompson's comments came as statistics for the UK as a whole showed that over the past three months, unemployment has risen at its fastest rate for 17 years to 1.79m, prompting fears that the jobless total could reach 2m by Christmas.
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the total unemployment rate has soared to 5.7% over the three months to August - a rise of 0.5% or 164,000 on the previous quarter.
Long term unemployment grows in print industry
Long-term unemployment is emerging in the print industry as economic conditions worsen, a recruitment expert has warned.
