Unemployment continues to fall

• Decrease of 4 thousand people per month in the last six months

• Female unemployment down in particular

According to the latest figures from Statistics Netherlands, an average 284 thousand people were unemployed in the Netherlands in the period July-September 2008. This is the equivalent of 3.7 percent of the labour force. In the same period last year the unemployment rate was still 4.3 percent. Unemployment has fallen by 4 thousand people a month in the last six months.

After adjustment for seasonal effects, unemployment was 292 thousand in the period July-September 2008, 4 thousand fewer than in the previous three-month period. Because the figures are based on a sample survey,  the development over a longer period of time is more reliable. In the last six months unemployment has fallen by an average 4 thousand people a month. This is slower than the decrease in 2006 and 2007, when it dropped by an average 6 thousand a month.

The number of unemployed fell by 44 thousand in the space of one year. Unemployment among women decreased by more than among men. Male unemployment decreased by only 8 thousand, while female unemployment fell by 36 thousand, to 146 thousand. The unemployment rate among women is now 4.3 percent, the lowest rate since 2001.