Employment and unemployment as measured by the LFS - 4th quarter of 2010

The status of the young on the labour market deteriorated

The total employment in Q4 2010 decreased by 8.5 thousand persons compared to the same period of 2009, the employment rate of the aged 15-64 years attained 65.5% and increased by 0.3 percentage point, year-on-year (y-o-y). The number of the unemployed according to the ILO methodology fell by 22.0 thousand persons, y-o-y. The number of the long-term unemployed, however, increased by 47.0 thousand persons. The general unemployment rate of the aged 15-64 years dropped by 0.4 percentage point reaching 7.0%, y-o-y.

Employment

Preliminary results for Q4 2010 still confirm stagnation of the employment level in the second half of 2010. The seasonally adjusted (SA) average number of employed persons increased by a statistically insignificant number of 1.8 thousand persons, compared to Q3 2010. In the year-on-year comparison, the number of the one (main) job holders fell by 8.5 thousand persons (by 0.2%) to 4 918.8 thousand. The overwhelming majority of them worked full time, the percentage of part-time jobs in the civil sector was 5.7%.

The number of employees, including members of producer cooperatives, decreased by 60.5 thousand compared with Q4 2009 to 4 035.8 thousand and their share was 82.0%. The decrease in the number of employed persons was compensated by a relatively high increase in the number of the self-employed in main job, including family workers. In relation to comparable period of 2009 their number increased by 51.8 thousand to 882.8 thousand and their share already attained 17.9%. In the time of the economic boom peak at the end of 2008 their share reached approximately 16%.

The year 2009 and the beginning of 2010 are characteristic by a slump in employment in the secondary sector, which was partially offset by the growing number of persons employed in the tertiary sector. The economic recovery brought different trends in employment in the production sector and in the services one. While in Q1 2010 the year-on-year loss of employees in the secondary sector was 116.6 thousand, in Q2 2010 the loss was only 79.8 thousand persons, and in Q3 2010 it accounted for mere 12.4 thousand persons, and in Q4 2010 the number of persons employed in the secondary sector already grew by 19.5 thousand persons. By contrast, the number of persons employed in the tertiary sector decreased on year-on-year basis when the number of persons employed there dropped by 27.3 thousand. The already low number of persons employed in the primary sector did not change significantly; in Q4 2010 it was 148.4 thousand persons.

The employment rate (percentage of the one (main) job holders in the age group 15-64) reached 65.5% and grew by 0.3 p.p. compared to Q4 2009. A decrease in the number of persons 15-64 years of age caused different tendencies in the development of employment indicators in the second half of 2010. On one hand, the absolute number of the employed was decreasing, yet, on the other hand, the employment rate was growing. The male employment rate increased by 0.4 p.p. to 74.0% and the female employment rate negligibly grew by 0.1 p.p. to 56.8% as well.

Unemployment

The seasonally adjusted average number of unemployed persons according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) methodology ¹⁾ decreased by 12.5 thousand persons in comparison with Q3 2010. Despite the overall decline in unemployment the number of unemployed persons of 20-29 years of age (108.3 thousand persons) remained still high.

The number of unemployed persons reached 363.0 thousand (of which 186.8 thousand females), and compared with Q4 2009 the total number of the unemployed was reduced by 22.0 thousand persons. The year-on-year drop in unemployment was significant mostly in the male component of the population (by 19.8 thousand).

What is negative is that the number of persons unemployed for one year and longer continued to rise. Their number increased, compared to Q4 2009, by 47.0 thousand persons and was 159.9 thousand persons. Their share became to move closer to a half of all the unemployed (44.1%) again. The negative trend in the long-term unemployment was demonstrated, first of all, in young persons 20-29 years of age. While in the time of the economic boom at the end of 2008 the number of long-term unemployed persons in this age group was the lowest (approximately 21 thousand persons), compared to the age groups of 30-39 years, 40-49 years, and 50-59 years, in Q4 2010 their number was, conversely, the highest one (43.5 thousand persons).

The general unemployment rate according to the ILO definition (in the age group 15-64 years) reached 7.0% and fell by 0.4 p.p. compared with Q4 2009.

The different survey methodology led to a discrepancy between the general unemployment rate (ILO) and the registered unemployment rate by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the CR (MLSA CR). The development trend was similar in both the rates. The registered unemployment rate by the MLSA CR reached 8.7% in Q4 2010.

Low unemployment rates are steadily recorded for university graduates (2.7%) and for persons with full secondary education with maturita examination (5.2%). A high unemployment rate persists among persons with basic education (23.1%) and slightly above-average unemployment rate was recorded in the large group of persons with secondary education without maturita examination, including persons with vocational education (8.1%).

Inactivity

In the sample survey, there are data on persons, who do not work and do not seek a job in an active manner, and thus do not comply with the ILO conditions for the unemployed, yet they state they would like to be working, collected, too. In Q4 2010 the number of such persons was 173.5 thousand, i.e. by 0.6 thousand more than in the same period of 2009. Majority of persons, willing to work, however, is not able to start in a potential job immediately. There are 54.1 thousand persons able to start in a job within a fortnight, at the latest, i.e. less than a third of the whole group.

Analysis - Transitions on the labour market in between Q3 2009 and Q3 2010

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Notes:
Contact: Ondřej Nývlt, phone: (+420) 274054069, e-m ail: ondrej.nyvlt@czso.cz
Data source: CZSO, Labour Force Sample Survey (LFSS) conducted in selected dwelling households, collective accommodation establishments are not included in the survey.
End of data collection / End of preliminary processing: 20 January 2011 / 27 January 2011
Related Internet-published document w-3101-10 – “Employment and Unemployment in the Czech Republic as Measured by the Labour Force Sample Survey” ( /csu/czso/1-ep-3 with th e finalised survey results will be available on the CZSO website by the end of Q1 2011.
The LFSS results have been grossed up to the total population of the Czech Republic using preliminary data of the population statistics as of 1 January 2010 and the prediction of natural increase and migration balance in 2010.

¹⁾ The ILO methodology defines the unemployed as all persons above a specified age who during the reference period were: - without work, that is, were not in paid employment or self employment during the reference period; - currently available for work, that is, were available for paid employment or self-employment during the reference period; and - seeking work, that is, had taken specific steps in a specified recent period to seek paid employment or self-employment. The specific steps may include registration at a public or private employment exchange; application to employers; checking at worksites, farms, factory gates, market or other assembly places; placing or answering newspaper advertisements; seeking assistance of friends or relatives; looking for land, building, machinery or equipment to establish own enterprise; arranging for financial resources; applying for permits and licences, etc. This methodology is uniform for all EU Member States and produces internationally comparable data. It should be noted that the definition of “the unemployed” by the ILO differs from the definition of “job applicants” registered by the labour offices of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the CR.

Published: 07.02.2011
The data are valid as of the release date of the publication.