Unemployment rate soaring

• 4.8 percent of Dutch labour force unemployed
• Unemployment rise across the board

According to the latest figures released by Statistics Netherlands, unemployment averaged 373 thousand (4.8 percent of the Dutch labour force) in the period April-June 2009, as against 4.0 percent in the same period in 2008.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment figure for the period April-June 2009 was 368 thousand, 16 thousand more than in the preceding three-monthly period. For the fourth month running, unemployment shows a dramatic increase.

The total number of unemployed has risen by 63 thousand compared to the same period in 2008. The increase occurred across all age groups and among both genders.
Presented as a percentage of the labour force, the most substantial increase was recorded in the age group 15-24. Unemployment in this age category grew to 11.4 percent (the equivalent of just over 100 thousand persons).