Number of registered unemployed in the Algarve soars 178% in August
Data from the Institute for Employment and Professional Training (IEFP) show that since March, the Algarve is the region with the most pronounced year-on-year increases in unemployment.
The Algarve region recorded the highest year-on-year increase in the number of unemployed registered in job centers in August, rising 177.8% to 20,425, according to data released on Monday.
Data from the Institute for Employment and Professional Training (IEFP) show that since March, the month in which the state of emergency began due to the pandemic, the Algarve is the region with the most pronounced year-on-year increases in unemployment.
Before the pandemic, in January and February, the Algarve was the only region in the country to register an increase in the number of registered unemployed, but with slight increases of 0.3% and 0.9%, respectively, compared to the same period in 2019.
In March, the increase in the number of unemployed in the Algarve soared to 41.4%, rising to 123.9% in April, 202.4% in May, 231.8% in June and 216.1% in July, having then recorded an increase of 177.8% in August (13,072 more people than a year ago).
Still, compared to the previous month, the number of unemployed in the Algarve region fell by 10.2% in August, i.e., there were 2,425 fewer registered unemployed than in July.
Also, job offers in the Algarve region fell 24.7% in August compared to the same month in 2019, to 510, but increased 4.6% compared to the previous month.
According to the IEFP, unemployment increased in August in most regions, with the exception of the Azores, where it fell by 1.3% to 7,040 registered unemployed.
The Lisbon and Tagus Valley region recorded the second highest year-on-year increase in August, after the Algarve, with a 48.1% rise to 91,140 registered unemployed.
The regions of Alentejo followed, where the number of registered job seekers grew 27.1% to 14,268, and Madeira, with 26.6%, to 14,925 unemployed.
In the North region, the number of unemployed registered rose 24.1% in August, to 127,281, while in the Centre the increase was 22.7% to 42,323.
In the country, the number of unemployed registered in the employment centers increased 34.5% in August in year-on-year terms and 0.5% compared to July, according to the IEFP.
At the end of August, 409,331 people were registered with the employment services of the mainland and islands, 0.5% more than in July (2,029 more people).
