Unemployment was up by 26,000 in September, taking the jobless figure to 2.78 million, a rise of 0.9 percent on the month and 3 percent on the year.

"/> Unemployment was up by 26,000 in September, taking the jobless figure to 2.78 million, a rise of 0.9 percent on the month and 3 percent on the year.

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UNEMPLOYMENT

Jobless total highest for over ten years

Unemployment was up by 26,000 in September, taking the jobless figure to 2.78 million, a rise of 0.9 percent on the month and 3 percent on the year.

Published: 27 October 2011 09:40 CEST
Jobless total highest for over ten years

After a brief pause in August when the numbers out of work fell by 2,000, the new figures took the government’s main measure of unemployment to its highest level since February 2000.

The increase raises new challenges for the government’s stated aim to get unemployment below 9 percent by year end.

Job seekers in all age groups saw their fortunes worsen. An additional 0.6 percent of under 25s were looking for work in September, taking their total to 438,000.

For people over 50, the figure was up 2.1 percent in September and 14.3 percent for the year. 572,000 people in this age group are without jobs.

In an interview with business daily Les Echos, the employment minister Xavier Bertrand said he was “not surprised” by the figures given the “slowdown in economic activity.”

“We are not that far away from the 9 percent target,” he said, “but who can say exactly what will happen?”

“My priority today is to make sure that job-creating measures are in place.”

A planned shake-up of the government agency that handles job seekers, Pôle Emploi, will be announced at the end of November.

“There will be a change of logic,” said the minister. “We need to reinforce local teams and free them from certain administrative constraints. Our three objectives will be personalized advice, independent advisers and a reactive approach.”

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BUSINESS

Unemployment in France falls slightly despite the lockdown

Unemployment in France has fallen slightly, despite the ongoing ravages of the health crisis and consequent lockdown, latest statistics show.

Published: 27 April 2021 16:46 CEST
Unemployment in France falls slightly despite the lockdown
Photo: Stephane du Sakatin/AFP

The number of unemployed job seekers in mainland France fell by 0.4 percent in the first three months of 2021, according to figures published by the French Ministry of Labour on Tuesday.

There were 3,560,600 unemployed registered at the Pôle Emploi (unemployment office), 12,200 fewer than during the last three months of 2020.

This follows a 2.7 percent fall in the final three months of 2020 – but the rate is still up 6.8 percent compared with the first three months of 2020, before Europe began to feel the economic impact of the Covid pandemic.

Currently all ‘non essential’ shops in France have been closed since April 3rd, while bars, restaurants, cafés, gyms, cinemas, theatres, museums and tourist sites have been closed since October 2020.

Despite the fall the total number of job seekers, the number of people who were in work but with reduced hours was up by 0.8 percent at the start of 2021, to 2,156,300.

That means that in total 5,716,900 people in mainland France were registered with Pôle emploi during this period, an increase of 4.9 percent compared with a year ago.

“Over the course of 2020, in one year, unemployment rose by 8 percent. This is obviously a lot, but we must remember that during the crisis of 2008-2009, unemployment leapt by 25 percent, so we can see that the government assistance is working,” Minister of Labour Élisabeth Borne told BFMTV on Tuesday.

The French government has put together a huge package of economic aid to try and mitigate the effects of the repeated lockdowns, from chômage partiel (furlough) schemes for employees to aid packages for business owners and the self-employed. But many small retailers have been hit hard by the three periods of closure for non-essential shops, while the tourist, leisure and hospitality sectors have also had a devastating year.

The economic downturn linked to the pandemic has disproportionately affected young people in France.  Across all categories of job seekers (unemployed and with reduced hours), the latest figures show a rise of 7.1 percent in a year for those under 25, compared to 4.5 percent for the 25-29 age range, and 4.8 percent for those aged 50 and over.

Men are also more likely to have signed up to Pôle emploi, with a 6.1 percent increase on last year, compared to a 3.8 percent increase among women.

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