During the third quarter of 2009, the Labour Force Survey estimates indicate an employment rate of 55.1 per cent and an unemployment rate of 6.9 per cent.
Labour Status
During the third quarter of 2009 the number of persons employed stood at 162,567. The number of unemployed persons totalled 11,986, while the number of inactive people stood at 175,581.
During the period under review, 59.2 per cent of persons aged between 15 and 64, were either working or unemployed. The highest activity rates were recorded within the 25-54 year-old age groups.
The Employed Population
The employment rate for the period under review stood at 55.1 per cent, with a gap of 33.8 per cent between male and female rates.
The largest share of employed males, 17.7 per cent, were engaged in manufacturing activities, followed by 15.5 per cent working in wholesale and retail trade. By contrast, most of the female employed population worked in education-related activities (17.1 per cent), followed by 13.7 per cent employed in the health and social work sector.
Employed persons were mostly engaged within service-oriented jobs. This category includes occupations such as hairdressers, policemen and salespersons. These were followed by technical associate jobs. This category was predominant among the female employed persons, whereas males were mostly engaged in craft and related trades and technical or associate professional jobs.
In terms of professional status, the number of self-employed were estimated at 12.7 per cent of total employed persons. The number of full-time employed persons stood at 146,510, or 90.1 per cent of the total number of persons in employment. More females were likely to have a part-time job or a full-time job with reduced hours.
The average gross annual salary of employees was estimated at €13,873. This amount is the equivalent of the basic salary and excludes extra payments such as overtime, bonuses and allowances, as explained in the methodological notes. The financial intermediation sector recorded the highest average gross annual salary by sector, whereas the highest average salary for employees by main occupation was in the legislators, senior officials and managerial occupational category.
The Unemployed Population
The number of unemployed during the third quarter last year was estimated at 11,986. Most of the unemployed were between 15 to 24 years of age. The majority of unemployed males were looking for a job for, at least12 months.
The unemployment rate for the period under review stood at 6.9 per cent.