Another 40,000 unemployed

The number of people in employment dropped to 3,790,000 in the December 2008-February 2009 period, while the number of unemployed rose to 378,000, which translates to an unemployment rate of 9.1 percent. 61 percent of the 15–64 age group was present in the labour market in the above period. The employment rate in this age group was 55.4 percent. The number of unemployed was up by 40,000, boosting the unemployment rate by 1.1 percent, compared to that of the December 2007-February 2008 period. The proportion represented by the under 25 age group among the unemployed dropped, while the percentage of long term unemployed was 45 percent.