Press Release 17/07/2009

POPULATION IN RELATION TO ACTIVITY SURVEY (PRA) 2nd QUARTER 2009

The number of people in work fell by 7,100 and unemployment stood at 7.8% in the second quarter of 2009 in the Basque Country

Last year, 40,000 net jobs were lost and unemployment rose by 4.3 percentage points

Labour market data in the Basque Country for the second quarter of 2009 revealed that the number of people in work stood at 949,800, which was a net loss of 7,100 individuals (-4%) compared to the previous quarter, according to Eustat data. On the other hand, the unemployment rate was 7.8%, a tenth of a point up on the first quarter of 2009.

As a result of the evolution of the employed and unemployed population, the activity rate fell to 55.3% in the second quarter of 2009.

As regards gender, this decrease particularly affected men, with 5,300 fewer employed than in the previous quarter, while the number of women employed fell by only 1.800. By province, employment fell in Bizkaia and in Gipuzkoa, with a loss of 6,500 and 1,000 fewer net jobs, respectively. However, Álava recovered 500 jobs.

Industry and the services sector lost jobs while they was an upturn in building and agriculture

Industry lost 9,800 and the services sector 5,000 net jobs, while construction gained 6,300 net jobs and agriculture 1,400.

The employment rate, the percentage of employed people aged 16 to 64 out of the total number of people within that age bracket, stood at 65%, four tenths of a percentage point down on three months earlier. This rate came to 71.8% among men, while it stood at 58% for women

By province, the highest employment rate was in Gipuzkoa with 67.2%, which was the same as the previous quarter , followed by Álava with 66.2% and down by 0.1 percentage points. Bizkaia had the lowest rate, with 63.2%, and was one point down on the previous quarter.

The number of employed workers on an indefinite contract increased by 8,700 and stood at 627,600 and the employees with temporary contracts (including those without contracts) was down by 11,000 to a total of 162,600.

The Basque Country is estimated to have around 834,200 households, of which almost a third has no working member. In almost six out of ten households, all the working-age people were employed, which meant 3,800 fewer families than in the previous quarter. In addition, households whose working-age members were all unemployed came to 24,200 (2.9% of the total), 2,400 more than in the previous quarter.



Trend of the employed population from 1985. Basque Country (In thousands)

The employment rate barely altered: from 7.7% to 7.8%

The number of people out of work, which is to say people who were actively seeking work and were furthermore available for work, was estimated to be 80,700 for the second quarter of the year, 700 more than in the previous quarter. The number of unemployed men, in total 46,200 people, increased by 2,200 and the number of unemployed women fell by 1,500 in the second quarter, down to a total of 34,500.

Data for the second quarter of 2009 showed that the unemployment rate stood at 7.8%, one tenth of a percentage point up on the previous quarter. The male unemployment rate rose to 8% (0.41 percentage points up) and the female one fell by 0.3 points, down to 7.6%. The youth unemployment rate continued to be the highest at 20.5%, with unemployment affecting 11,500 young job seekers aged between 16 to 24.

By province, special mention should be made of the increase in the number of unemployed in Bizkaia, with 3,100 more people and an unemployment rate of 8.5%. However, unemployment fell by 2,600 people to 19,200 in Gipuzkoa, with an employment rate of 5.8%. In Álava, the unemployment rate barely fluctuated with respect to the previous quarter and stood at 9.6%.

According to EUROSTAT - Statistical Office of the European Union-, the unemployment rate for the EU-27 as a whole was 8.9% in May 2009 and 18.7% for Spain.



During the last year, 44,500 people joined the ranks of the unemployed in the Basque Country

The employed population fell by 40,000 people (-4%) over the last twelve-month period, in other words, the second quarter of 2009 with respect to the second quarter of 2008. This decrease was mainly among men, with 32,800 fewer jobs, while 7,200 women became unemployed.

The unemployment rate in the last year fell by 4.3 percentage points (from 3.5% to 7.8%), meaning that 44.500 more people joined the ranks of the unemployed in the Basque Country over the year. By province, the unemployment rate increased by 7.6 percentage points in Álava, by 4.2 points in Bizkaia and by 2.9 points in Gipuzkoa over the last twelve months.

Methodology note: The series has been re-estimated since 2001 as a result of the new population estimates arising from the 2020 population forecasts.

On the other hand, from the first quarter of 2009 onwards, the PRA has used the new Classification of Economic Activity (CNAE-2009) to code economic activity.

POPULATION IN RELATION TO ACTIVITY SURVEY (PRA)

For further information:

Basque Statistics Office C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Tlf:+34-945-01 75 00 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01 E-mail: eustat@eustat.es Contact: MªJosé Santamaría Gallardo Tel:+34-945-01 75 08 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01 Online press releases: www.eustat.es Databank: www.eustat.eus/bancopx/english/indice.aspx