Press Release 20/01/2017
The unemployment rate fell to 12.5%, and the employment rate decreased by 0.9% in the fourth quarter of 2016 in the Basque Country
Employment fell amongst young people and temporary employees in particular
Data for the fourth quarter of 2016 on the Basque labour market put the Basque unemployment rate at 12.5%, 0.1 percentage point less than the third quarter of 2016, i.e. there were 2,400 fewer unemployed individuals according to Eustat data. There were 903,000 employed individuals, which is a net decrease of 8,300 employed individuals compared with the third quarter (-0.9%).
After the summer period, which was characterised by a significant increase in employment, especially in temporary employment, the fourth quarter saw youth employment for those aged between 16 and 24 fall the most - specifically, by 5,700 individuals. This drop accounted for 69% of the total decrease in employment for the quarter. Furthermore, these are salaried employees on a temporary contract and those not on a contract (-4,600), as well as non-salaried employees (2,800). In terms of gender, the decrease in the number of individuals in work most affected men, with 11,100 fewer in work than the previous quarter, whilst the number of women in work rose by 2,800. The province with the greatest decrease was Bizkaia, with 6,600 fewer employed individuals, followed by Gipuzkoa with 4,200 fewer, whereas in Álava employment rose by 2,400.
All the activity sectors lost employees
The working population increased by 5,900 in industry, by 2,000 in the services sector and by 400 in the primary sector, whilst in the construction sector it remained practically stable.
The employment rate, calculated as the percentage of people in work aged 16 to 64 over the total for these ages, was down by 0.3 percentage points compared to the previous quarter, standing at 65.9%. This figure reached 69% for men and 62.7% for women.
By province, the highest employment rate turned out to be that of Gipuzkoa, with 67.6% and a decrease of 0.6 percentage points compared to the previous quarter; this was followed by Álava, with a rate of 66.9% and an increase of 1.3 points; lastly, Bizkaia had the lowest rate, with 64.5% and an decrease of 0.7 points in the last quarter.
In 489,900 households, all active individuals were employed
In the fourth quarter of 2016 it was estimated that there were 872,300 households in the Basque Country, 591,800 of which had an active individual, which is 4,800 fewer than the previous quarter. In just over half of households, all of the active individuals were in work, a similar figure to the previous year. However, households where all active individuals were unemployed stood at 49,900, 1,900 more than the previous quarter. There were 280,500 households without active individuals, i.e. 4,800 more.
There were 2,400 fewer people in work, and the unemployment rate fell to 12.5%, 0.1 percentage point 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 129,300 in the fourth quarter of 2016, 2,400 down from the previous quarter. The number of unemployed women, 63,200 individuals, was down by 4,000, whilst the number of unemployed men fell by 1,500, reaching a total of 66,100 for the quarter.
The data for the fourth quarter of 2016 revealed an unemployment rate of 12.5%, one tenth of a point less than the previous quarter. The female unemployment rate fell to 12.8% (0.8 percentage points down) and the male rate was up 0.5 points, reaching 12.2%. The youth unemployment rate continued to be the highest, and stood at 24.8% (a decrease of 0.8 percentage points), affecting 9,400 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 Álava (-5,000 individuals) where the unemployment rate stood at 10.8%, 3.1 percentage points down on the previous quarter. In Bizkaia, which has 75,700 individuals out of work, the number of unemployed fell by 1,000, leaving the unemployment rate standing at 14%, with no change from the previous quarter. Unemployment in Gipuzkoa rose by 3,500 individuals, and the unemployment rate stood at 10.9%, 1 percentage point more.
According to EUROSTAT, the Statistical Office of the European Union, in November 2016 the unemployment rate of the European Union-28 stood at 8.3% and that of Spain stood at 19.2%.
As a result of the change in the working and unemployed population, the activity rate was 56.4% in the fourth quarter of 2016, six percentage points lower than that of the previous quarter.
Last year, the unemployment rate fell by over 2 percentage points, with the working population growing by over 8,000 individuals
The number of people in work in the Basque Country rose by 8,100 compared to the fourth quarter of 2015. This rise was mainly concentrated amongst women, with 5,500 more in work, whilst the number of men in work was up by 2,600.
The unemployment rate was down by 2.2 percentage points (from 14.7% to 12.5%), with 25,500 fewer individuals unemployed in the Basque Country compared to the data from the fourth quarter of 2015.
The number of employed residents registered for Social Security rose during the fourth quarter of 2016
It is estimated that there were 838,900 registered workers for the quarter on average in the Basque Country during the fourth quarter of 2016, i.e. the number of individuals residing in the Basque Country who were registered for Social Security at the time of the survey. Not all these individuals were employed according to criteria set by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) that are used in surveys on the workforce. In fact, during the fourth quarter, 97.8% of registered individuals were employed, which makes 820,700 individuals. Compared with the previous quarter, the number of registered employees residing in the Basque Country rose, specifically by 3,100 people.
On the other hand, not all those employed according to ILO criteria in the PRA were registered for Social Security. In fact, during the fourth quarter of 2016, 82,300 were employed individuals that were not registered, either because these people were not based in companies in the Basque Country, they belonged to public mutual societies for civil servants or they were in other situations. This group saw a decrease of 9,200 employed individuals compared with the previous quarter, which ultimately cancels out the rise of registered employed individuals residing in the Basque Country.
30.5% of those unemployed according to the PRA were not registered as such with the Basque Employment Service (Lanbide)
Of all the unemployed people registered with Lanbide, i.e. people residing in the Basque Country who were registered with Lanbide at the time of the survey in any one of the categories designated for registered unemployed, 67.2% of those individuals were unemployed according to the ILO definition, 4,200 fewer employees than the previous quarter.
Additionally, 80.6% were individuals who remained registered throughout the quarter, or who were temporarily off the register. The other individuals either registered for the first time, or they left the Lanbide register in the fourth quarter of 2016.
Of the individuals unemployed according to the ILO definition in the PRA, 30.5% were not registered as such with Lanbide.
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)