Employment and unemployment in the CR as measured by the LFS - 3. quarter of 2004

Employment

Preliminary results show that the seasonally adjusted average number of employed persons increased by 8.8 thousand on the 2nd quarter of 2004, which indicates that the decrease in total employment comes to an end.

The number of first (main) jobholders in the 3rd quarter totalled 4 717.4 thousand on average – a decrease of 10.4 thousand year-on-year. The number of employed men was 2 673.9 thousand and that of employed women was 2 043.4 thousand. Year-on-year, the employment decreased most in ‘manufacturing’ (-13.3 thousand), ‘public administration, defence and compulsory social security’ (-13.1 thousand), and ‘real estate; renting and business activities’ (-10.4 thousand). On the other hand, it increased in ‘health and social work’ and ‘mining and quarrying’ (+21.1 thousand and +7.5 thousand, respectively).

Prevailing in the number of employed persons were employees (3 902.1 thousand); their number grew by 7.6 thousand year-on-year, and the share of employees in total employment rose by 0.3 percentage points to 82.7%. Members of producers’ cooperatives dropped in number by 3.3 thousand to 24.6 thousand. The number of the self-employed reached 790.1 thousand – a drop of 14.9 thousand year-on-year. Compared to the 3rd quarter of 2003, the share of the whole business sphere dropped by 0.3 percentage points to 16.7% of total employment. The number of the self-employed with and without employees decreased by 5.5 thousand to 187.9 thousand and by 7.6 thousand to 570.9 thousand, respectively. The number of contributing family workers fell by 1.8 thousand to 31.3 thousand. The drop in total employment decreased the employment rate (the share of first jobholders in the number of persons aged 15-64) by 0.3 percentage points year-on-year to 64.4 %. The 1st quarter 2004 data of Eurostat suggest that in the framework of the EU the CR has already got to a level under this rate, after the group of the former EU-15.

With the drop in the number of first (main) jobholders, the number of second jobs also decreased (by 9.0 thousand to 113.7 thousand). Unlike the main jobs, the self-employed without employees prevail in the second jobholders, accounting for nearly three fifths of all the employed persons holding second jobs (57.5%).

Unemployment

The seasonally adjusted average number of unemployed persons according to ILO methodology1) dropped by 12.9 thousand year-on-year.

The number of unemployed persons was 420.4 thousand, of which women accounted for 222.4 thousand (52.9%). Compared with the 3rd quarter 2003 average, the total number of the unemployed increased by 11.3 thousand. The rise in total unemployment showed itself solely in the male population (+20.5 thousand), namely in the whole 15-64 working age group. The total number of unemployed women decreased by 9.2 thousand year-on-year. The development of total unemployment was affected first of all by a rise in the number of the long-term unemployed (one year or more), by 11.7 thousand to 216.1 thousand, whose share climbed over half of all the unemployed persons (51.4%). The number of persons unemployed for four years or more went up by 12. 0 thousand to 63.5 thousand (15.1% of the unemployed in total).

General unemployment rate (ILO) was 8.2 % according to LFSS results, growing by 0.2 percentage points year-on-year. Different survey methodologies brought about a difference between the level of general unemployment rate (ILO) and the level of registered unemployment rate established by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the CR (MLSA CR). According to the original methodology in force up to June this year, the quarterly registered unemployment rate increased by 0.2 percentage points to 10.1%, and so did the general unemployment rate. According to the new methodology, based on the quantification of available job applicants, the MLSA CR registered unemployment rate in the 3rd quarter was 9.3%.

Most of the unemployed (73.9%) were secondary school graduates without GCSE and individuals with basic education. This fact also led to consid-erable differentiation of the unemployment rate figures calculated for different educational attainment. Rather low unemploy-ment rates are steadily recorded for university graduates (2.5%) and persons with full secondary education with GCSE (5.1%), while a high unemployment rate continues to be recorded for persons with basic education (25.9%). An above-the-average unemployment rate (9.2%) is measured for the relatively large group of persons with secondary education without GCSE (including persons with vocational education).

Inactivity

Measured in the framework of the full harmonization of the national LFSS questionnaire with the EU standard are also data on persons who do not have any job and are not seeking a job in an active way and do not thus meet the ILO conditions for being considered as unemployed, but declare their willingness to work. These economically inactive persons are a potential labour reserve. In the 3rd quarter of 2004, their number amounted to 296.0 thousand – an increase of 1.7 thousand year-on-year. A large number of these persons were found among people aged up to 24 (103.7 thousand) who are mainly students or apprentices. The relatively high number of people aged 25-34 (51.6 thousand) results from a high number of women on parental leave or housewives, who take interest in being employed. The number of persons interested in employment increases at the age of 50+: 17.4 thousand in the age group 50-54 (mostly disability pension recipients) and 31.4 thousand in the age group 55-59 (persons in normal and early retirement and in disability retirement); the age group 60+ was represented by 54.6 thousand, old-age pensioners largely prevailing among persons interested in job.

Analysis - Development of the economic activity of the population in the 3rd quarter of 2004

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Note

Contact: Ivo Makalouš, tel.: (+420) 27405 2159, e-mail: ivo.makalous@csu.gov.cz

Data source: CZSO, Labour Force Sample Survey (LFSS) conducted in sampled households

End of data collection: 14 October 2004

End of preliminary processing: 21 October 2004

The results of LFSS were reweighted to relate to the total population of the CR, using final results of demographic statistics as at 31 December 2003 and a prediction of natural increase and migration balance in the 3rd quarter of 2004.

Related publication: 3101-04 Employment and Unemployment in the Czech Republic as Measured by the Labour Force Sample Survey

1) The ILO methodology defines the unemployed as persons who were: (a) without work during the reference week, i.e. neither had a job nor were at work (for one hour or more) in paid employment or self-employment, (b) currently available for work, i.e. were available for paid employment or self-employment before the end of the two weeks following the reference week, and (c) actively seeking work. It should be noted that the definition of “the unemployed” laid down by ILO differs from the definition of job applicants on the register of employment offices. See the above-mentioned related publication of the CZSO for a detailed explanation of differences between the number of the unemployed by ILO and the number of job applicants.