The tightness in the labor market is clearly noticeable in the unemployment figures. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), 3.2 percent of the working population was on the sidelines in April. A month earlier, it was still 3.3 percent, the lowest percentage since the measurements began in 2003.
As in previous months, the decline in youth unemployment continued. About 6.9 percent of young people between the ages of 15 and 25 were unemployed, compared to 7.1 percent a month earlier.
The unemployment rate for people between the ages of 25 and 45 fell by 0.2 percentage point to 2.5 percent. There was a minimal decrease among older employees from 45 years of age. Here the unemployment rate was 2.3 percent.
Despite the corona crisis, unemployment has remained very low over the past two years. Labor market experts often attribute this to the corona support that has helped companies through the pandemic, so that they did not collapse or had to save less. Now that the corona support has ended, experts expect more bankruptcies and that could lead to more unemployment.