Official figures show the unemployment rate has tumbled to 5.8% - its lowest level for more than six years.
The data, released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), highlighted a decline of 58,000 in the number classed as unemployed in the three months to November - leaving the total at 1.91 million.
There was also confirmation that pay was rising much faster than inflation for a third consecutive month, following the five-year squeeze on living standards in the wake of the world financial crisis.
The pay improvements have been at the heart of debate inside the Bank of England over the timing of a potential interest rate rise but it emerged that worries about low inflation had overcome calls for an increase.
Minutes of the Bank's last interest rate-setting meeting showed that policymakers Martin Weale and Ian McCafferty, who had voted for a rise of 0.25% to 0.75% since last summer, added their voices to concerns about below-target inflation becoming entrenched.
It meant there was unity on the monetary policy committee in January, which voted 9-0 to keep the rate on hold at its record low of 0.5%, and further bolstered market expectations that a rate increase was unlikely this year.
CPI inflation was measured at 0.5% in December and the Bank minutes suggested that it could stand at 0% in March.
Bank governor Mark Carney has previously said he sees the crash in world oil prices - largely responsible for easing price growth - as a net positive for the UK economy.
The Bank had said it was looking to see pay growth outstrip inflation before considering a rate increase but it did not foresee the extent of the oil price decline - having previously forecast inflation in March at 1%.
The ONS said average earnings increased by 1.7% in the year to November, up by 0.3% on the previous month.
Jobs and wage growth has also been at the heart of political debate in the run-up to the General Election.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: "The drop in unemployment is welcome news.
"Behind the statistics are stories of people finding self-respect and purpose in life."
Labour maintained the Government had presided over a cost of living crisis.
Shadow work and pensions secretary Rachel Reeves said: "Today's fall in overall unemployment is welcome, but wages remain sluggish and working people are £1,600 a year worse off since 2010.
"The Tory cost-of-living crisis and the Tory low-wage economy has left millions of people who do the right thing, work and contribute struggling to make ends meet and pay the bills."
The head of economics at the union organisation TUC, Nicola Smith, said: "After years of falling living standards, today's real earnings growth suggests that we may finally be starting to make up some of the lost ground.
"But at this rate of progress it will still be at least another parliament before wages are even back to where they were before the crisis."
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