Press Release 21/10/2016
The unemployment rate fell to 12.6%, and the employment rate rose by 0.8% in the third quarter of 2016 in the Basque Country
The activity rate stood at 57% and the employment rate was at 66.2%
The data from the labour market in the Basque Country from the third quarter of 2016 showed that there were 911,300 people in work, which was an increase of 7,400 compared with the previous quarter (+0.8%), according to Eustat data. On the other hand, the unemployment rate of the Basque Country stood at 12.6%, 1.3 percentage points down on the second quarter of 2016.
As a result of the change in the working and unemployed population, the activity rate was 57% in the third quarter of 2016, 0.3 percentage points below that of the previous quarter.
As regards gender, employment rose among men (+10,700), whereas it fell among women (-3,300). The province that saw the greatest increase was Gipuzkoa, with 3,800 more employed individuals, followed by Bizkaia with 3,200 more, and finally Álava, with 400 more.
Industry is the sector with the largest growth in employment
The number of people employed in industry increased by 8,600, whereas it remained stable in construction and in the primary sector (+100 and -100, respectively) and fell in the services sector by 1,000 employees.
The employment rate, calculated as the percentage of people in work aged 16 to 64 over the total number of people for these ages, was up by half a percentage point compared to the previous quarter, standing at 66.2%. This figure reached 70.4% for men and 62.1% for women.
By province, the highest employment rate turned out to be that of Gipuzkoa, with 68.2% and an increase of 0.6 percentage points compared to the previous quarter; this was followed by Álava, with a rate of 65.6% and rise of 0.6 percentage points; lastly, Bizkaia had the lowest rate, with 65.2% and an increase of half a percentage point in the last quarter.
In 490,200 households, all active individuals were employed
In the third quarter of 2016 it was estimated that there were 872,300 households in the Basque Country, a third of which did not have any active individuals. In just over half of households, all of the active individuals were in work, 7,100 families more than the previous quarter; furthermore, households where all active individuals were unemployed stood at 48,000 (5.5% of the total), following a decrease of 2,400.
The unemployment rate fell to 12.6%, 1.3 percentage points less than the previous quarter
The unemployed population in the Basque Country, that is, individuals who are available for work, actively making enquiries and seeking employment, was estimated to be 131,700 in the third quarter of the year, 14,400 down from the previous quarter. The number of unemployed men, 64,600 individuals, was down by 14,000, whilst the number of unemployed women fell by 300, reaching a total of 67,200 for the quarter.
The data for the third quarter of 2016 revealed an unemployment rate of 12.6%, 1.3 percentage points down on the previous quarter. The male unemployment rate dropped to 11.7% (2.5 percentage points less) and the female rate remained at 13.6%. The youth unemployment rate continued to be the highest, despite the notable decrease of 0.8 percentage points (25.6%), affecting 11,700 active young people between the ages of 16 and 24.
By province, the greatest decrease in the number of people out of work was in Bizkaia (-10,500 individuals) where the unemployment rate stood at 14%, 1.7 percentage points down on the previous quarter. In Gipuzkoa, with 33,300 individuals out of work, the number of unemployed fell by 2,800, with the unemployment rate standing at 9.9%. In Álava, there were 1,100 fewer unemployed individuals than the previous quarter and the unemployment rate stood at 13.9%.
According to EUROSTAT, the Statistical Office of the European Union, in August 2016 the unemployment rate of the European Union-28 stood at 8.6% and that of Spain stood at 19.5%.
Last year, the number of people in work increased and the number of people out of work decreased
The number of people in work in the Basque Country rose by 15,200 compared to the third quarter of 2015. This rise was mainly concentrated amongst men, with 10,700 more jobs, whilst the number of women in work was up by 4,500.
The unemployment rate was down by 2.2 percentage points (from 14.8% to 12.6%), with 24,300 fewer individuals unemployed in the Basque Country compared to the data from the third quarter of 2015.
98.5% of average registered workers were in work, according to ILO criteria
It is estimated that there were 830,400 registered workers for the quarter on average in the Basque Country, i.e. the number of individuals residing in the Basque Country who were registered for Social Security at the time of the survey. Of those, the PRA estimates that 98.5% were employed, according to criteria from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), which totals 817,600 individuals.
Furthermore, of the 830,400 average registered workers estimated, 777,300 (93.6%) of those remained registered during the quarter on a continuous basis, or with a temporary interruption, whilst the rest of these individuals - 53,100 registered workers - were either newly registered, or they left the register in the third quarter of 2016.
Amongst those employed according to ILO criteria in the PRA, 79,900 people, 8.8%, were not registered for Social Security in companies based in the Basque Country, which may belong to public mutual societies for civil servants or companies from other Autonomous Communities or situations.
28.2% of those unemployed were not registered as unemployed in Lanbide
It is estimated that there was a quarterly average of 130,900 registered unemployed individuals in Lanbide, i.e. individuals residing in the Basque Country who were registered in Lanbide at the time of the survey in any one of the categories designated for registered unemployment. Of those, 69% were unemployed according to the ILO definition (90,300 people).
Additionally, of the 130,900 individuals registered as unemployed in the Lanbide on average, 108,900 (83.2%) were individuals who remained registered throughout the quarter, or who were temporarily off the register. The other 22,000 individuals either registered for the first time, or they left the Lanbide register in the third quarter of 2016.
Of the individuals unemployed according to the ILO definition in the PRA, 28.2% were not registered as unemployed in Lanbide (37,100 individuals), even though they may be registered under other categories.
For further information:
Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Instituto Vasco de Estadística
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tlf: 945 01 75 62
Further press releases on survey on the population in relation to activity in the Basque Country (PRA)
Databank on survey on the population in relation to activity in the Basque Country (PRA)