Unemployment further down

20/01/2011 15:00

Unemployment down for the tenth month running
31 thousand fewer unemployed than one year ago
Largest decline among young job seekers
WW benefits down by more than 37 thousand from one year ago

According to the latest figures released by Statistics Netherlands, seasonally-adjusted unemployment was 401 thousand in December 2010, a reduction by 8 thousand relative to November.

Figures published by the Institute for Implementation of Employees' Insurances (UWV) show that both the number of job seekers and the number of unemployment (WW) benefits have fallen compared to twelve months ago.

Unemployment continually in decline since February

Unemployment adjusted for seasonal variation dropped by 8 thousand in December. Women chiefly account for the decline. Unemployment fell for the tenth month running. After the peak in February, the number of unemployed was reduced by an average of 5 thousand a month.
If seasonal variation is not taken into account, 373 thousand persons were unemployed in December, i.e. 31 thousand fewer than in December 2009. The number of young unemployed in the age category 15-25 was 25 thousand lower than one year previously, while the number of unemployed over-45s grew by 8 thousand.

Fewer young and more over-45s unemployed

The UWV reports that the number of unemployed job seekers (nww) was reduced by more than 17 thousand to 491 thousand. The most substantial decline was recorded among the young (-10.7 percent). Among over-45s the number of unemployed rose by 1.2 percent relative to a year ago. In the province of Limburg, unemployment dropped by 9.1 percent and in the province of South Holland unemployment grew by 3.2 percent from December 2009.

Unemployment rose by 1.3 percent in December 2010 from the previous month. The increase is predominantly due to occupational categories like the sectors construction and agriculture, which are traditionally subject to seasonal variation.

Fewer WW benefits

The number of WW benefits was reduced by 12.0 percent to 272 thousand in one year. In December last year, the number of new benefits was 5.9 percent down on December 2009. The number of terminated benefits was 34 thousand in December 2010, i.e. an increase by 4.6 percent from one year previously.