Unemployment rate up

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© CBS
From July through September, unemployment rose by an average of 6 thousand per month. As a result, 371 thousand people aged 15 to 74 years were unemployed in September. This is 3.7 percent of the labour force. This development is in line with a worsening economic picture. In the July-September period, the number of people in paid employment rose by one thousand each month, on average. This is evident from new figures released by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). At the end of September, the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) recorded 155 thousand current unemployment (WW) benefits.

In September, 3.6 million people aged 15 to 74 did not have paid work for various reasons. Aside from the unemployed, 3.2 million people were not looking and/or immediately available for work; they are not counted towards the labour force. They are mainly retirees and people unable to work due to illness or disability. The number of people outside the labour force has remained the same over the past three months.

Unemployment and WW unemployment benefits
   Unemployment (15 to 74 yrs, seasonally adjusted) (x 1,000)WW unemployment benefits (15 yrs up to state pension age) (x 1,000)
2017January588419
2017February582416
2017March571415
2017April563401
2017May564386
2017June555372
2017July544364
2017August534362
2017September529351
2017October511343
2017November504337
2017December503330
2018January487335
2018February474330
2018March465327
2018April463314
2018May460301
2018June463288
2018July458279
2018August463278
2018September451274
2018October444269
2018November433267
2018December437263
2019January437279
2019February419274
2019March416268
2019April409257
2019May411251
2019June423243
2019July424234
2019August432237
2019September432233
2019October432233
2019November434228
2019December409223
2020January390241
2020February383240
2020March388250
2020April427292
2020May439301
2020June513301
2020July532301
2020August533292
2020September519278
2020October509278
2020November485276
2020December476286
2021January448289
2021February450286
2021March439282
2021April427266
2021May419250
2021June405238
2021July393224
2021August406213
2021September399208
2021October382199
2021November359189
2021December369192
2022January354193
2022February336188
2022March327184
2022April316175
2022May323165
2022June339161
2022July353157
2022August378152
2022September382152
2022October365150
2022November364145
2022December352149
2023January360154
2023February356154
2023March357158
2023April343156
2023May353151
2023June353153
2023July362152
2023August364156
2023September371155

UWV: slightly fewer WW benefits

At the end of September, UWV provided 155.1 thousand current WW benefits. This is 1.3 thousand fewer than in the previous month (-0.8 percent). In September, 17.8 thousand new WW benefits were granted while 19.0 thousand benefits were terminated.

Relative to one year previously, the number of current WW benefits increased slightly, by 3.1 thousand (2.0 percent).

Unemployment up, highest rate among young people

The unemployment rate increased to 3.7 percent in September. It was still 3.5 percent in June. Youth unemployment rose in particular during this period, from 8.3 to 8.8 percent. This means there is a continued trend of rising unemployment especially among young people (15-24 years) who were still working relatively recently. Over 80 percent of unemployed young people are pupils or students.

The unemployment rate was considerably lower among older age groups, but has also increased slightly since June: from 2.8 to 2.9 percent among 25 to 44-year-olds and from 2.1 to 2.2 percent among 45 to 74-year-olds. The current trend in unemployment corresponds with the deteriorated economic climate in recent months. See also: Economic outlook deteriorates further in September.

Unemployment
   15-74 yrs (% )15-24 yrs (% )25-44 yrs (% )45-74 yrs (% )
2022Sep3.88.43.12.7
2022Oct3.77.82.92.6
2022Nov3.67.82.92.6
2022Dec3.57.52.82.5
2023Jan3.67.83.02.4
2023Feb3.57.83.02.2
2023Mar3.58.02.92.2
2023Apr3.47.92.82.1
2023May3.58.22.92.1
2023Jun3.58.32.82.1
2023Jul3.68.62.92.1
2023Aug3.68.72.92.1
2023Sep3.78.82.92.2

More job losses

In September, the number of unemployed was up by 18 thousand on three months previously (adding on average 6 thousand per month). This increase is the result of underlying flows between the employed, unemployed and non-labour force. This is visualised in the diagram below. The chart below the diagram shows the development of these different flows over the past few months.

There are two different flows that can lead to lower unemployment. The first flow is when unemployed people find a job; the second flow is when unemployed people stop seeking work and leave the labour market.

There are also two opposite flows, which can increase unemployment. These occur when employed people lose their jobs and when people who were not active on the labour market start seeking work. If they do not find work immediately, they become part of the unemployed labour force. The increase in unemployment over the past three months is mainly due to a higher number of job losses.

Every month, CBS publishes figures on the labour force in accordance with guidelines of the International Labour Organization (ILO). The corresponding indicators, i.e. the employed and unemployed labour force, are used around the world to describe cyclical developments on the labour market. Monthly figures are essential in this respect. In addition, UWV issues its own monthly figures on unemployment benefits. Figures released by UWV do not correspond one-to-one with the labour force indicators.