Unemployment rate is lower than it has been in over 20 years

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At the end of March, 92,755 people were registered as unemployed in regional employment centers (RAV), which is 5,697 fewer than the previous month. The unemployment rate fell to 2.0 percent from 2.1 percent in February, the State Secretariat of Economic Affairs (Seco) announced on Thursday. Economists surveyed by the AWP news agency had expected between 1.9 and 2.0 percent.

Therefore, the rate is still at a very low level. A lower annual rate for March was last measured at 1.7 percent in 2001. An annual comparison also shows how low unemployment is at the moment. In March 2022, another 16,745 people were registered as unemployed.

Differences by season

The unemployment rate is often subject to seasonal fluctuations, as there are fewer jobs in the winter months, for example in the construction, agriculture and gastronomy sectors. Adjusted for seasonal factors by Seco, the number of unemployed increased minimally in March 2023. However, the corresponding unemployment rate remained at a very low level of 1.9 percent.

Job search data also shows how dry the job market in Switzerland is: According to Seco, there were 161,864 registered job seekers in March 2023, 4,899 fewer than in February. In an annual comparison, 31,731 fewer people were looking for work.

The number of jobs registered with RAV increased by 1,741 in the analyzed month compared to February, reaching 56,742. According to the information obtained, 35,049 of these open positions were subject to the employment registration requirement. This applies to occupations with an unemployment rate of at least 5 percent.

Short-term work is almost a thing of the past

The short-time working tool no longer plays any role in the Swiss labor market. In January – data are reported with a lag – only 1,552 people were for the short run. The number of companies affected by the short-time working decreased by 22 compared to the previous month and became 137.

Seco is also striking a temporary balance when it comes to tackling short-time employment abuse during the pandemic. According to the statement, approximately 2,200 “irregularities” references have been received so far. 623 companies were checked on-site.

In about 11 percent of cases, benefits could be proven to be misused, in 65 percent of cases things didn’t go as planned and refund requests were made, in 24 percent the statements turned out to be true. (SDA/kae)

Source :Blick