Basque unemployment rate stood at 9.1% in 2nd quarter of 2010

Labour market data for the Basque Country for the second quarter of 2010 revealed that the number of people in work stood at 951,000, which was a net increase of 8,400 people compared to the previous quarter (+0.9%), according to Eustat data. On the other hand, the unemployment rate for the Basque Country was 9.1%, 0.2 points up on the first quarter of 2010.

As a result of the evolution of the employed and unemployed population, the activity rate was 56.1% for the second quarter of 200, 6 percentage points higher than the previous quarter. This was the result of the inactive population joining the job market due to uncertainty regarding employment within families, among other causes. In fact, the inactive population fell by 10,900 people in this quarter.

The increase in employment particularly affected women, with 5,500 more employed in the previous quarter, while the number of employed men increased by 2,800. Employment rose in the three provinces: Gipuzkoa was in first place with 5,400 more net jobs, followed by Bizkaia with 1,600 and, finally, Álava where jobs were up by 1,400.

Industry and the service sector recovered jobs while unemployment rose in agriculture and construction

Industry gained 5,900 net jobs, followed by the service sector with 4,600 more. However, agriculture lost 1,300 jobs and construction 800.

The employment rate, the percentage of employed people aged 16 to 64 out of the total number of people within that age range, stood at 65.3%, 0.7 percentage points higher than in the previous quarter This rate came to 71.5% among men, while it stood at 59.0% for women

By province, the highest employment rate was in Gipuzkoa with 67.8%, which was up 1.6 points on the previous quarter, followed by Álava with 66.05%, up nine tenths. Finally, Bizkaia had the lowest rate (63.7%) and had risen by two tenths of a point in the last quarter.

The number of employed workers on an indefinite contract fell by 3,900 and stood at 610,400, while the employees with temporary contracts (including those without contracts) was up by 13,000 to a total of 177,000.

In second quarter of 2010, there was estimated to be around 835,900 households in Basque Country (1,200 down on the previous quarter), of which a third had no working member. In nearly six out of ten households, all the working-age people were employed, which was 2,100 fewer families than in the previous quarter. In addition, households whose working-age members were all unemployed stood at 28,000 (3.3% of the total), 100 more than in the previous quarter.

The unemployment rate rose from 8.9% to 9.1%

The number of people out of work in the Basque Country, which is to say people who were actively seeking work and were furthermore available for work, was estimated to be 95,000 for the second quarter of the year, 3.200 more than in the previous quarter. The number of unemployed men, in total 55,100 people, increased by 2,900 and the number of unemployed women rose by 300 in the second quarter, up to a total of 39,900.

Data for the second quarter of 2010 showed that the unemployment rate stood at 9.1%, 0.2 percentage points up on the previous quarter. The male unemployment rate rose to 9.5% (0.41 percentage points up) and female unemployment remained unchanged at 8.6%. The youth unemployment rate continued to be the highest at 25.0%, with unemployment affecting 14,300 young job seekers aged between 16 to 24.

By provinces, the greatest increase in the number of unemployed was in Bizkaia (up by 3,800 people) and the unemployment rate stood at 10.1%. In Gipuzkoa, unemployment rose by 3,300 to 25,000 unemployed and the unemployment rate stood at 7.5%. However, the unemployment rate fell by 3,900 people in Álava with respect to the previous quarter and the unemployment rate was 8.9%.

According to EUROSTAT - Statistical Office of the European Union-, the unemployment rate for the EU-27 as a whole was 10.0% in May 2010 and 19.9% for Spain.

During the last year, 14,300 people joined the ranks of the unemployed in the Basque Country

The employed population in the Basque Country recovered by a total 1,200 people (+0.1%) compared to the second quarter of 2009. This increase was mainly among women, with 5,300 more jobs, while 4,100 men joined the ranks of the unemployed.

The unemployment rate increased by 1.3 percentage points (from 7.8% to 9.1%) over the last year, which means that 14,300 more people lost their jobs in the Basque Country compared to figures for the second quarter of 2009. By provinces, the unemployment rate increased by 1.7 percentage points in Gipuzkoa and by 1.6 points in Bizkaia, while the unemployment rate fell in Álava by seven tenths of a point over the last twelve months.