Fewer new jobs, fewer unemployed

Luxembourg unemployment at 6.4%

With 15,760 jobseekers registered with Adem at the end of last year, unemployment was lower than at the same time in 2021, but it has risen steadily since mid-2022.

In June last year, unemployment reached its lowest point of 2022, with just 13,638 people looking for work. This was down 16.9% compared to 2021, a year still marked by the pandemic and periodic lockdowns.

This number gradually rose to reach 15,760 in December, down 3.9% compared to the same month in 2021. The unemployment rate was at 4.8%, data from Statec published on Friday showed.

More men (8,060) than women (7,700) were registered with job centre Adem last month, with people aged 45 or over making up the biggest share (6,837). There were more jobseekers with a lower secondary education (6,703) than higher qualifications.

And those in long-term unemployment, meaning they have been registered with Adem for one year or more, also dominated (6,723), despite seeing a decrease of 18% year-in-year.

While unemployment overall was down, the number of people living on full unemployment benefits was up 1.1% to reach 8.359 people.

The rising number of jobseekers towards the end of last year came with a lower number of job vacancies being posted.

Employers offered 2,679 new jobs through Adem last month, down 17.8% from December 2021. The total number of jobs available was at 10,925. In November, Adem had 3,276 new jobs available.

Job vacancies reached a record in May 2022, when employers posted 4,812 new vacancies, bringing the total number of jobs to be filled to more than 13,250.