Unemployment rate up

Over the past three months, more people in the Netherlands who were not actively looking on the labour market have begun seeking employment, but often without success. The number of people engaged in employment remained practically the same.  Consequently, an additional average of 4,000 people were unemployed in the past three months. In October, 6.9 percent of the labour force were unemployed. This number, equivalent to 616 thousand people, is still below that of last January when decline in unemployment set in, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS).

UWV: More unemployment benefits

In October 2015, the number of current unemployment benefits reached 421 thousand, up 5 thousand from September and roughly equal to October last year. The number of benefits for people under 25 increased most sharply by 8.1 percent. This can largely be attributed to rising unemployment in seasonal sectors, such as hotels and restaurants and agriculture, where young people have a relatively strong presence. On the other hand, the number of benefits for people over 55 increased only slightly in October by 0.6 percent. 

Higher unemployment among young people and over-45s

Over the past three months, unemployment has gone up among young people as well as people over 45. Last July, youth unemployment  was 11.3 percent but this rate went up to 11.6 percent in October. The unemployment  rate among people over 45 increased from 6.4 to 6.6 percent. The percentages for both groups are more or less equal to January 2015. In October, unemployment was 5.4 percent for people between the ages of 25 and 44, down from 6.1 percent last January and 5.4 percent last July, with no change since then.

8.3 million people in paid employment

The Netherlands has 12.7 million people between the ages of 15 and 75. In October, 65.4 percent of this group were engaged in paid employment, equivalent to 8.3 million people. This includes 4.5 million men and 3.8 million women. The number of employed people in this group has increased by 21 thousand since January. In the same group, 616 thousand people were unemployed in October. The number has increased by an average 4,000 each month over the past three months. In the six months prior, unemployment had declined by an average 7 thousand per month.

Unemployment among men is slightly higher than among women. The remaining 3.8 million people between the ages of 15 and 75 are not included in the labour force: they were not engaged in employment but at the same time were not looking or not immediately available for work. The majority of those outside the labour force are female, at 2.2 million.

UWV: more new unemployment benefits go to people over 55

Between January and October this year, the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) paid out 478 thousand new WW unemployment benefits, 4.4 percent down from the same period last year. There was a decline of more than 13 percent in new benefits paid to young people ((under 25) while the number of new benefits increased by nearly 10 percent among those over 55. In most sectors, UWV reported a decline in the number of new benefits, with the exception of the transport and storage sector, where it increased by nearly 12 percent.