Annualised unemployment down 6% in April

  • Lusa
  • 22 May 2023

As for long-term unemployment, it registered "a chain decrease of 0.7% (-798 people), being 24.4% below the level registered in April 2022 (-37,764 people)," the government said.

The number of unemployed registered at job centres fell in April by 6% year-on-year and fell by 3.5% compared to the previous month, the government announced on Monday.

In a statement, the ministry of labour, solidarity and social security said that unemployment registered in April (295,422 people) fell, “with a reduction of -3.5% (-10,735 people) compared to the previous month and -6.0% below the level observed in April 2022 (-19,013 people)”.

In parallel, the number of young unemployed registered with the IEFP – Institute of Employment and Professional Training also fell once again, “being the lowest ever (31,872 people), in April, with a drop of 6.9% (-2,360 young people), and a decrease of 1.7% (-561 young people) compared to the same month in the previous year”, said the Ministry.

As for long-term unemployment, it registered “a chain decrease of 0.7% (-798 people), being 24.4% below the level registered in April 2022 (-37,764 people),” the government said.

Thus, between March and April this year, “registered unemployment fell in all regions, with emphasis on the reduction of 21.8% in the Algarve region”.

Finally, the government said, “at a sectoral level, there were reductions in all sectors of economic activity”, namely in agriculture (-9.0%), secondary (-1.6%) and tertiary (-3.5%)”.

In year-on-year terms, there were also falls in all sectors, with agriculture falling 1.7%, secondary 3.9% and tertiary 5.0%, it said.

According to data released today by the IEFP, at the end of April, unmet job offers “totalled 15,468 in employment services throughout the country,” and this number corresponds to an annual decrease of 23.4% and a reduction, compared to the previous month, of 6.9% of offers.

According to the institute, 37,135 unemployed people registered with employment services during the month of April, a number that “is lower than the one observed in the same month of 2022 (-512; -1.4 per cent) and also in relation to the previous month (-10,990; -22.8 per cent)”.

The entity also revealed that the “job offers received throughout this month totalled 8,782 throughout the country”, a figure lower than the same month by 25.9% and lower compared to the previous month by 40.4%.

“The economic activities with the most job offers received this month (data for the continent), in descending order, were: ‘real estate, administrative and support services’ (23.1%), ‘accommodation, restaurants and similar’ (16.0%) and ‘wholesale and retail trade’ (14.7%)”, said the IEFP.

In turn, placements made during April totalled 7,647 across the country, according to the IEFP, which concluded that this number “is lower than the same period in 2022” by 15.4 per cent and also lower compared to the previous month by 15.3 per cent.

According to the institute, analysis of placements by groups of professions on the mainland “shows a greater concentration of ‘unskilled workers’ (34.8%), ‘workers in personal services, protection and security and salespeople’ (22.0%), and ‘administrative staff’ (9.9%)”.