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Published: 20 January 2009

Employment in December on level with the year before

According to the Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland, the number of employed persons in December 2008 was 2 497 000, or 7 000 higher than a year earlier. This change fits within the margin of error for the number of employed persons (±29 000). The number of employed persons aged 55 to 64 grew but that of employed persons aged 15 to 24 fell. The number of fixed-term and part-time employees decreased, whereas the number of full-time wage and salary employees grew. Fixed-term and part-time employment was most common among young people aged 15 to 24. The number of employed persons decreased in the Province of Western Finland and increased slightly in the other provinces.

In December, the employment rate , that is, the proportion of the employed among persons aged 15 to 64, stood at 69,5 per cent, which was 0,1 percentage points higher than one year before. Adjusted for seasonal and random variation, the trend of the employment rate was 70,6 per cent. The employment rate of men was 70,6 per cent and that of women 68,4 per cent. The employment rate among young people fell by 2,1 percentage points from December 2007 to 38,7 per cent.

According to the Labour Force Survey, there were 161 000 unemployed persons in December 2008, i.e. 3 000 more than one year before. This change fits within the margin of error for the number of unemployed persons (±14 000).

At 6,1 per cent the unemployment rate was 0,1 percentage points higher than one year before. The trend of the unemployment rate was 6,6 per cent in December. The unemployment rate was lowest in the Province of Southern Finland, at 5,1 per cent, and highest in the Province of Oulu, at 9,2 per cent. In December 2008, the unemployment rate among young people aged 15 to 24 was 12,4 per cent, which was 1,2 percentage points higher than in the previous year’s December. The trend of the unemployment rate among young people was 16,7 per cent.

Changes in the labour force 2008/12 – 2007/12 according to Statistics Finland’s Labour Force Survey, thousand persons

  2008/12 2007/12 Change, %
2008/12 - 2007/12
Population aged 15-74 4 014 3 991 0,6
Labour force, total 2 658 2 648 0,4
Employed, total 2 497 2 490 0,3
– employees 2 161 2 176 –0,7
– self-employed persons and unpaid family workers 336 314 7,2
Unemployed persons 161 158 1,9
Total persons not in labour force 1 355 1 343 0,9
      Percentage points
Employment rate (persons aged 15 to 64), % 69,5 69,5 0,1
Unemployment rate, % 6,1 6,0 0,1
Labour force participation rate, % 66,2 66,3 –0,1
Unrounded figures are used in the Change column.
The data comply with the ILO/EU definition.		      

Labour Force Survey quarterly and annual data

Average employment and unemployment figures describing the fourth quarter of 2008 and the whole year 2008 are presented below. These figures are more accurate than the monthly data as they are based on a larger sample. Quarterly and annual employment data are published, among other things, by industry and region. The size of the monthly sample is not large enough for these kinds of data. The employment and unemployment figures for the year 2008 have been updated into the database tables of the Labour Force Survey. The database tables as well as the tables on the most recent month and quarter are available at: http://tilastokeskus.fi/til/tyti/tau.html

According to the Labour Force Survey, the average number of employed persons during the last quarter of 2008 was 2 509 000, which is 24 000 more than in the corresponding quarter of the year before. The numbers of full-time employees, entrepreneurs and employed persons aged 55 to 64 grew and those of people aged 15 to 24 as well as part-time and fixed-term employees fell from the corresponding quarter in the year before. In the last quarter of the year the number of unemployed persons was 159 000, which is 2 000 fewer than in the October to December period of 2007.

According to Statistics Finland’s Labour Force Survey, some 14,000 persons were temporarily laid off in the last quarter of 2008. Their number has risen clearly towards the end of 2008, as in the third quarter of the year the number of temporarily laid off persons stood at just 4 000.

According to the Labour Force Survey, the average number of employed persons in 2008 was 2 531 000, which is 39 000 more than in 2007. The rate of growth of employment slowed down towards the end of the year. The average monthly increase in the number of employed persons was 54 000 in the first half of the year and 24 000 in the second half.

In 2008 the average number of unemployed persons was 172 000, or 11 000 fewer than in 2007. The rate of unemployment was 6,4 per cent in 2008, having been 6,9 per cent in 2007.

Employment Service Statistics of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy

At end-December 2008, there were altogether 234 000 persons registered, in accordance with the Unemployment Security Act and the Labour Exchange Office Regulations, as job seekers at the employment offices (as from 1 January 2009 employment and economic development offices). The number of unemployed job seekers was 15 000 higher than in December 2007. Unemployment continued to rise from the year before in the areas of all other Employment and Economic Development Centres apart from Satakunta (-0 per cent). The number of unemployed job-seekers increased the most in South Ostrobothnia (15 per cent), Ostrobothnia (15 per cent) and Pirkanmaa (12 per cent). At the end of December, the number of temporarily laid off persons registered at the employment offices was 24 000, which was 14 000 more than twelve months earlier. The number of persons covered by labour market policy measures totalled 76 000 the end of December, which was 1 000 fewer than in December of the year before. Altogether 2,9 per cent of the labour force were covered by labour market policy measures. There were 26 000 unemployed job seekers aged under 25 registered at the employment offices. Their number was 4 000 higher than in December of the year before. During December 2008, 27 000 new vacancies were reported to the employment offices, which is 2 000 fewer than in December 2007.

Changes 2008/12 – 2007/12 according to the Employment Service Statistics of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, thousand persons

  2008/12 2007/12 Change, %
2008/12 - 2007/12
Unemployed job seekers 234 219 6,8
– unemployed over a year 42 48 –12,3
Total measures 76 77 –1,6
– employed with subsidised measures 35 33 5,9
– in labour market training 26 28 –7,9
– in trainee and job alternation places 14 15 –6,3
New vacancies at employment offices 27 29 –6,7
Unrounded figures are used in the Change column.      

Contact information for the Ministry of Employment and the Economy:
Mr Petri Syvänen, tel. +359 10 604 8050, http://www.tem.fi/employmentbulletin

Links

Updated Labour Force Survey database tables: http://tilastokeskus.fi/til/tyti/tau.html

Differences between the Labour Force Survey and the Employment Service Statistics are explained in the quality description of the Labour Force Survey.

Latest seasonally adjusted employment figures published by the EU  can be found under the theme of Population and social conditions on Eurostat's home page http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu.


Source: Labour force survey 2008, December. Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Kalle Sinivuori (09) 1734 3524, Juha Martikainen (09) 1734 3225, Veli Rajaniemi (09) 1734 3434, tyovoimatutkimus@stat.fi

Director in charge: Riitta Harala

Publication in pdf-format (581.8 kB)

Tables

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Appendix tables

Figures
Quality descriptions

Updated 20.01.2009

Referencing instructions:

Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Labour force survey [e-publication].
ISSN=1798-7857. December 2008. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 5.11.2024].
Access method: http://www.stat.fi/til/tyti/2008/12/tyti_2008_12_2009-01-20_tie_001_en.html