Press Release 20/04/2018
The unemployment rate stood at 11.3%, and the employment rate decreased by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2018 in the Basque Country
There was a reduction in households with all active individuals out of work
The data from the labour market in the Basque Country from the first quarter of 2018 showed that there were 916,900 people in work, which was a decrease of 1,400 compared with the previous quarter (-0.2%), according to Eustat data. On the other hand, the unemployment rate of the Basque Country stood at 11.3%, 0.2 percentage points up on the fourth quarter of 2017.
As a result of the evolution in the employed and unemployed population, the activity rate stood at 56.2% in the first quarter of 2018, remaining stable with respect to the previous quarter.
By province, employment was up in Gipuzkoa, with 1,300 more people in work, whereas Bizkaia experienced the biggest drop in employment, with 2,500 fewer people in work; Álava remained largely unchanged (-100). By capitals, whilst employment was down in Donostia/San Sebastián by 1,000, and in Vitoria-Gasteiz by 500, there were 1,500 more people in work in Bizkaia.
As far as gender was concerned, the fall in employment affected women, with 6,600 fewer in work than in the previous quarter, whilst the number of men in work increased by 5,200.
The working population increased in all sectors, except for the services sector
The employed population in the Basque Country increased by 100 in the primary sector, by 1,400 in construction, and 2,900 in industry. In contrast, it fell by 5,800 in the services sector.
The employment rate, calculated as the percentage of people in work aged 16 to 64 over the total for these ages, fell by 0.1 percentage points compared to the previous quarter, standing at 66.4%. This figure reached 70.3% for men and 62.5% for women.
By province, the highest employment rate turned out to be that of Gipuzkoa, with 68.6% and an increase of 0.1 percentage points compared to the previous quarter. Álava came second with 66.4% and a fall of 6 points compared to the previous quarter and, finally, Bizkaia, where the employment rate dropped by 1.2 points, to stand at 65.1%.
There was an increase in the number of households where all members were employed and a fall in those where all members were unemployed
In the first quarter of 2018 it was estimated that there were 884,600 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, 4,700 families more than the previous quarter; furthermore, households where all active individuals were unemployed stood at 39,900, 500 fewer households than in the previous quarter.
The unemployment rate rose to 11.3%, two tenths up on 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 116,600 in the first quarter of the year, 1,800 up on the previous quarter. The number of unemployed women, 61,800 individuals, was up by 5,600, whilst the number of unemployed men fell by 3,900, reaching a total of 54,700 for the quarter.
The data for the first quarter of 2018 revealed an unemployment rate of 11.3%, 2 percentage points up on the previous quarter. The female unemployment rate rose to 12.5% (up 1.1 percentage points) and the male rate was down 0.8 points, standing at 10.1%. The youth unemployment rate continued to be the highest, and stood at 19.5% (an increase of 2.3 percentage points), affecting 7,700 active young people between the ages of 16 and 24.
By province, the greatest increase in the number of people out of work was in Álava (+2,500 individuals) where the unemployment rate stood at 12.2%, 1.4 percentage points up on the previous quarter. In Gipuzkoa, with 29,000 individuals out of work, the number of unemployed rose by 700 and the unemployment rate increased by 0.2 points to 8.6%. In Bizkaia, there were 1,500 fewer unemployed individuals than the previous quarter and the unemployment rate was down two tenths (12.7%). The behaviour of the unemployment rate was reproduced in their capitals: the capital where it most rose was Vitoria-Gasteiz, with 1,900 more people out of work; this was followed by Donostia/San Sebastián (+600), whereas for Bilbao the unemployed population was reduced by 700.
According to EUROSTAT – the Statistical Office of the European Union – in February 2018 the unemployment rate of the European Union-28 stood at 7.1 % and that of Spain stood at 16.1%.
In the 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 5,000 compared to the first quarter of 2017. This rise was mainly concentrated amongst men, with 5,900 more in work, whilst the number of women with jobs was up by 900.
The unemployment rate was down by 2 percentage points (from 11.5% to 11.3%), with 2,100 fewer individuals unemployed in the Basque Country compared to the data from the first quarter of 2017.
98.4% of average registered workers were in work, according to ILO criteria
It is estimated that there were 860,200 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 98.4% were employed, according to criteria from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), a total of 846,500 individuals.
Amongst those employed according to ILO criteria in the PRA, 65,000 people (7.1%) were not registered for Social Security in companies based in the Basque Country, either because they belonged to public mutual societies for civil servants or were in other situations.
31% of those unemployed were not registered as unemployed with the Basque Employment Institute (Lanbide)
It is estimated that there was a quarterly average of 111,400 unemployed individuals registered with 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, 70% were unemployed according to the ILO definition (78,000 unemployed individuals). Of the individuals unemployed according to the ILO definition in the PRA, 31% were not registered as unemployed with Lanbide (36,100 individuals), even though they may be registered under other categories.
METHODOLOGICAL NOTE: The 2017 data were revised taking into account the population projections obtained based on the population on 01 January 2017.
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