Employment and unemployment in January 2000

- 42,000 more employed than a year ago
- Employment rate 64.2 per cent
- Rate of unemployment 10.6 per cent, 264,000 unemployed
- 24,000 new vacancies at labour exchange offices

According to the Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland, there were 42,000 more employed in January than a year earlier. The number of wage-earners was up by 36,000 on January 1999. The number of self-employed persons also went up slightly. The number of wage-earners employed in continuous full-time jobs increased by 32,000 and that of persons in part-time employment by 9,000, whereas the number of persons with fixed-term jobs fell by 12,000. During January, 24,000 new vacancies were reported to the labour exchange offices, which is 6,000 more than in January 1999.

In January, the employment rate, that is, the proportion of the employed among persons aged 15 to 64, stood at 64.2 per cent, which is 0.9 percentage points higher than in last year's January. Adjusted for seasonal variation, the employment rate stood at 66.6 per cent in January. Of economic activities, jobs increased most in business services, manufacturing and construction. Jobs increased most in the Provinces of Eastern and Western Finland.

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Changes in the labour force 1/1999 - 1/2000, thousand
	January 2000	January 1999	CHANGE, % 1/99 - 1/00
Statistics Finland Labour Force Survey:
Employed, total	2,240	2,198	1.9
- wage earners	1,923	1,887	1.9
Employment rate, %	64,2	63,3	0.9 ²
Unemployed ¹	264	273	-3.1
Labour force, total	2,504	2,471	1.3
Unemployment rate, %	10,6	11,0	-0.4 ²
Economically inactive, total	1,393	1,413	-1.4
- discouraged job seekers	43	40	7.0
- other disguised unemployment	92	111	-17.3
Ministry of Labour Employment Exchange Statistics:
Unemployed job seekers	358	376	-4.9
- unemployed over a year	94	104	-10.4
Employed with subsidised measures	43	54	-20.2
In labour market training	34	37	-9.2
In trainee and job alternation places	15	15	1.3
New vacancies in labour exchange offices	24	18	31.8
Unrounded figures are used in the CHANGE column ¹ Based on the recommendations of the International Labour Organisation (ILO)			² percentage points

According to the Labour Force Survey, there were 264,000 unemployed in January, which is 9,000 fewer than a year earlier. The rate of unemployment was 10.6 per cent, which is 0.4 percentage points lower than in January 1999. Men's unemployment rate stood at 10.1 per cent and women's at 11.1 per cent. Adjusted for seasonal variation, the unemployment rate has remained at the same level of 10.0 per cent or so since July 1999.

At the end of January, there were 358,000 persons registered, in accordance with the Unemployment Security Act and the Labour Exchange Office Regulations, as job seekers at the labour exchange offices. This is about 18,000 fewer than in January 1999. The number of unemployed job seekers declined in the areas of all employment and economic development centres, except for Swedish Ostrobothnia where unemployment increased slightly. The number of those covered by employment policy measures fell by 14,000 from last year's January and was 3.9 per cent of the labour force.

According to the Labour Force Survey, the unemployment rate, that is, the proportion of the unemployed of the labour force, among persons aged 15 to 24 was 23.6 per cent, which is 0.5 percentage points lower than a year earlier. There were 44,000 unemployed job seekers aged under 25 registered at the labour exchange offices. Their number fell by 3,000 from the previous year.

Differences between the Labour Force Survey and the Labour Exchange Statistics

The employment situation is monitored monthly both with the sample-based Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland and with the register-based Labour Exchange Statistics of the Ministry of Labour. The Labour Exchange Statistics describe the situation on the last weekday of the month. Since January 2000, data for the Labour Force Survey have been collected for every week of the month, whereas previously they were only collected for the week containing the 15^th day of the month. According to made analyses the impact of the change on the results is negligible.

The Labour Force Survey follows the recommendations of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the practices required by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. The Labour Exchange Statistics are based on legislation and administrative regulations.

The Labour Force Survey and the Labour Exchange Statistics apply two basically different statistical criteria to how actively a person seeks work and makes him/herself available on the labour market. For this reason, the number of unemployed job seekers does not agree with the number of unemployed calculated in accordance with the ILO recommendations. The difference between the January unemployment figures of Statistics Finland and the Ministry of Labour was of the same magnitude as a year earlier. Unemployed persons who have neither contacted a labour exchange office for over four weeks, nor actively sought work in any other way either, are generally classified in the Labour Force Survey as belonging to disguised unemployment. However, in compliance with the ILO recommendations, the Survey also classifies as unemployed persons seeking jobs by means other than through labour exchange offices.

In the Labour Force Survey, persons who could accept a job but are not actively seeking one are classified as belonging to disguised unemployment. The Survey divides disguised unemployment into two categories: discouraged job seekers are those who do not seek work because they do not think they would find any. Other disguised unemployment consists of persons who do not seek work because of studies, childcare or some other reason, although they would be prepared to accept work if it were offered. In accordance with the ILO recommendations, all persons in disguised unemployment are classified in the Survey as not belonging to the labour force.

Since the Labour Force Survey is a sample survey, its data allow for random variation. In respect of the unemployment rate, for example, the 95 per cent confidence interval is plus minus 0.6 percentage points. The confidence interval for the number of unemployed is approximately plus minus 16,000 persons.

Inquiries:
Statistics Finland: Ms Salme Kiiski +358 9 1734 3230, Mr Tapio Oksanen +358 9 1734 3228, Mr Hannu Siitonen (09) 1734 3225, Ms Annukka Ruuhela +358 9 1734 3524; e-mail tyovoima.tilastokeskus@stat.fi, Internet http://www.stat.fi/tk/el/tyoll.html
Ministry of Labour: Mr Oiva Lönnberg +358 9 1856 8048, e-mail oiva.lonnberg@mol.fi; Internet http://www.mol.fi/katsaukset/
Latest seasonally adjusted unemployment figures published by the EU at http://europa.eu.int/comm/eurostat/