Unemployment rate slightly down in October

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© ANP / Peter Hilz
In October, unemployment fell to 3.6 percent of the labour force. In September, it stood at 3.7 percent in September, which means that the slight increase in unemployment over the past six months did not continue. On average over the past three months, the number of unemployed remained roughly the same, and in October it stood at 361 thousand. In the same period, the number of people in paid employment rose by 11 thousand each month, on average. This is evident from new figures released by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). At the end of October, the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) recorded 156 thousand current unemployment (WW) benefits.

In October, 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. These people are not part of the labour force. They are mainly retirees and people unable to work due to sickness or work incapacity Over the past three months, the number of people outside the labour force increased by an average of 3 thousand per month.

 

Unemployment and WW benefits
   Unemployment (15 to 74 yrs, seasonally adjusted) (x 1,000)WW unemployment benefits (15 yrs up to state pension age) (x 1,000)
2017januari588419
2017februari582416
2017maart571415
2017april563401
2017mei564386
2017juni555372
2017juli544364
2017augustus534362
2017september529351
2017oktober511343
2017november504337
2017december503330
2018januari487335
2018februari474330
2018maart465327
2018april463314
2018mei460301
2018juni463288
2018juli458279
2018augustus463278
2018september451274
2018oktober444269
2018november433267
2018december437263
2019januari437279
2019februari419274
2019maart416268
2019april409257
2019mei411251
2019juni423243
2019juli424234
2019augustus432237
2019september432233
2019oktober432233
2019november434228
2019december409223
2020januari390241
2020februari383240
2020maart388250
2020april427292
2020mei439301
2020juni513301
2020juli532301
2020augustus533292
2020september519278
2020oktober509278
2020november485276
2020december476286
2021januari448289
2021februari450286
2021maart439282
2021april427266
2021mei419250
2021juni405238
2021juli393224
2021augustus406213
2021september399208
2021oktober382199
2021november359189
2021december369192
2022januari354193
2022februari336188
2022maart327184
2022april316175
2022mei323165
2022juni339161
2022juli353157
2022augustus378152
2022september382152
2022oktober365150
2022november364145
2022december352149
2023januari360154
2023februari356154
2023maart357158
2023april343156
2023mei353151
2023juni353153
2023juli362152
2023augustus364156
2023september371155
2023oktober361156

UWV: Number of unemployment benefits rose slightly in October

In October 2023, the number of WW benefits slightly increased. At the end of that month, UWV issued 155.8 thousand WW benefits. This is a 0.4-percent increase relative to the end of September (155.1 thousand). In October, 17.6 thousand benefits were terminated, while 18.3 thousand new benefits were granted.
Compared to September, WW benefits increased particularly in the accommodation and food services sector (+5.0 percent) and agriculture, landscaping and fisheries (+4.9 percent). Declines were also seen: in education (-4.1 percent), banking and insurance (-2.7 percent) and culture (-1.5 percent).
Unemployment rate almost at the same level as last year
At 361 thousand, the number of unemployed, was similar to that in the same month one year previously (365 thousand). At the end of last year and the beginning of this year, the unemployment rate was still falling and then rose slightly again. Conversely, the number of people in employment continued to increase, rising by 154 thousand between October 2022 and October 2023. As a result, net labour participation increased from 72.1 to 73.1 percent.

Employed and unemployed labour force, average monthly change in previous 3 months
   Employed (x 1,000)Unemployed (x 1,000)
2022Oct194
2022Nov36-5
2022Dec45-10
2023Jan31-2
2023Feb17-3
2023Mar42
2023Apr9-6
2023May9-1
2023Jun6-1
2023Jul16
2023Aug54
2023Sep16
2023Oct110

Flows into and out of unemployment roughly balanced

In October, there were a thousand fewer unemployed people than three months previously, leaving the unemployment rate virtually unchanged on average per month. Unemployment trends are the result of underlying flows between the employed, unemployed and those not in the 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.

 


Unemployment may increase or decrease due to four different flows. Two of these 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.

Over the past three months, the four flows were fairly evenly balanced, keeping the monthly unemployment rate virtually constant on average.

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 about benefits released by UWV do not correspond one-to-one with the labour force indicators. For more details on the different sources, see our technical explanation<link naar toelichting> (Dutch only).

Sources