According to the Household Labour Force Survey, the number of unemployed persons aged 15 and over fell by 18,000 to 3.042 million in April 2024. The unemployment rate was estimated at 7.2% for men and 11.1% for women.

The seasonally adjusted employment rate was recorded at 49.5%, showing a slight decrease of 0.1 percentage points. The number of employed persons slightly decreased by 1,000, totaling 32.618 million in April 2024. Employment rates were 66.9% for men and 32.5% for women.

The seasonally adjusted labour force participation rate remained steady at 54.2%. The total number of persons in the labour force decreased by 18,000 to 35.661 million. The participation rate was 72.1% for men and 36.6% for women.

The youth unemployment rate for individuals aged 15-24 dropped by 0.1 percentage point to 14.5%. This rate was estimated at 12.2% for men and 19.1% for women.

Seasonally and calendar adjusted average weekly actual working hours increased by 0.6 hours to 44.3 hours in April 2024.

The seasonally adjusted composite measure of labour underutilization, which includes time-related underemployment, potential labour force, and unemployment, rose to 27.2% in April 2024, an increase of 3.1 percentage points from the previous month. The combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment was 19.7%, while the combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force was estimated at 17.1%. (ILKHA)