Unemployment made a downturn but the number of persons who had been unemployed the whole year continued growing in 2016

According to Statistics Finland’s employment statistics there were 356,000 unemployed persons at the end 2016 of whom around one-third had been unemployed the whole year. The number of persons who had been unemployed for at least one day during the year was 681,000. The number of unemployed at the end of the year and that of persons who had been unemployed during the year decreased from 2015. Simultaneously, the number of persons who had been unemployed the whole year increased by close on 2,000. The data on unemployment in the employment statistics are based on the data of the Register of Job Seekers of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.

Number of unemployed throughout the year by the duration of unemployment in 2011 to 2016

Number of persons who had been unemployed the whole year doubled from 2011

In the employment statistics, unemployment can be described either as the number of unemployed persons at the end of the year or as the number of unemployment days accumulated over the year per person. The number of days is calculated based on the duration of unemployed job seekers’ job seeking periods. The number of the unemployed was 356,000 at the end of the year but the number of persons who had been unemployed job seekers for at least one day during the year was 681,000.

The number of persons who had been unemployed the whole year has grown continuously since 2012. The number doubled from 2011 to 2016 and rose to 122,000 (Appendix table 1). The share of persons who had been unemployed for a year of all persons that had experienced unemployment during the year rose to 18 per cent. However, the growth in the number and share of persons who had been unemployed the whole year slowed down in 2016. The total number of persons who had experienced unemployment during the year made a downturn.

Persons who had been unemployed the whole year older than other unemployed persons

Persons who had been unemployed the whole year were older than other unemployed persons. In the group where unemployment had lasted for under a year the average age was 38 years in 2016 while in the group where unemployment had lasted continuously for the whole year the average age was 48. The share of persons aged 60 or over was 26 per cent of persons who had been unemployed the whole year and only six per cent among those who had been unemployed for under a year.

The majority of all unemployed persons were men: 52 per cent among those who had been unemployed for under a year and slightly more among those who had been unemployed the whole year, 58 per cent.

Unemployment was prolonged in Uusimaa

The share of those having been unemployed the whole year among all who had experienced unemployment was highest in Uusimaa, 21 per cent, and lowest in Åland, six per cent (Appendix table 2). For the whole country the share was 18 per cent.

When examining the share of all those who had experienced unemployment during the year among the population aged 18 to 64, the share of those who had experienced unemployment was the third lowest among the regions in Uusimaa (17%). In other words, the share of the population having experienced unemployment was lower than average in Uusimaa but among these persons a relatively large share had experienced prolonged unemployment that lasted throughout the year.

In the whole country, 21 per cent of the working age population had been unemployed at some time during the year. In 2016, the share of persons having experienced unemployment was highest in North Karelia, where one-quarter of the working-age population had been unemployed during the year. The share was lowest in Åland, only eight per cent.

Unemployment is often preceded by unemployment

Ninety-six per cent of those who had been unemployed for the whole year 2016 had also been unemployed at the end of 2015 and nearly one-half had also been unemployed for the whole year 2015. Of those who had experienced unemployment for less than a year, 43 per cent had been unemployed at the end of the previous year, around one-third had been employed and slightly over ten per cent students.

Main type of activity in 2015 of persons who had been unemployed during 2016 by the duration of unemployment, %

Main type of activity 2015	Persons who had been unemployed for less than a year in 2016, %	Persons who had been unemployed for the whole year in 2016, %
Employed	33.4	2.2
Unemployed	43.3	95.7
Student, pupil	11.4	0.3
Other	11.9	1.8
Total, %	100.0	100.0
Total, number	558,766	122,097

Source: Employment Statistics, Statistics Finland

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Director in charge: Jari Tarkoma

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Appendix tables

Updated 26.5.2017

Referencing instructions:

Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Employment [e-publication].
ISSN=2323-6825. Main type of activity and status in occupation 2016. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 6.11.2024].
Access method: http://www.stat.fi/til/tyokay/2016/02/tyokay_2016_02_2017-05-26_tie_001_en.html