Federal Employment Agency - Typical seasonal trend: more unemployed in December
The winter has already had typical seasonal effects on the Thuringian labor market: the number of unemployed rose slightly in December. At 65,500, 1,500 more people were out of work than in November, as the regional directorate of the Federal Employment Agency announced on Wednesday. This put the unemployment rate at six percent as of December 13, compared to 5.8 percent in November. "As usual at this time of year, there was an increase in layoffs in outdoor professions," said Regional Directorate Head Markus Behrens. Men were particularly affected by this.
The number of unemployed people across Germany also rose by 31,000 in December compared to November to 2.637 million. This increased the unemployment rate by 0.1 points to 5.7 percent. Compared to other federal states, Thuringia's unemployment rate was higher than that of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony and on a par with Brandenburg. In the other eastern federal states, the rate was higher than in Thuringia.
"Employers are reluctant to take on new staff during the winter months, especially in outdoor professions," said Behrens. The long-term unemployed in particular are finding it difficult to find a job. Their number also increased: Around 22,600 men and women in Thuringia were out of work for more than a year in December. That was around 400 more than in November 2023 and 2,700 more than in December 2022, meaning that the long-term unemployed accounted for 34.5 percent of all unemployed people last December, compared to 33 percent at the end of 2022.
According to Behrens, it was also typical for the season that fewer people managed to make the transition from unemployment to employment. Although 2,900 previously unemployed men and women found a new job in December, this was 800 fewer than in November, according to the figures.
The weakening economy, increased interest rates and higher commodity prices caused many companies to be more cautious when making personnel decisions. "Companies are reacting to an economic downturn less with layoffs and are holding back on hiring new staff," says Behrens.
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In Thuringia, the unemployment rate among women also increased during the winter, following the trend in outdoor professions. As of December 13, approximately 26,700 women were unemployed, representing a rise of 700 from November.
Although the overall unemployment rate in Thuringia was higher than that of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony, the number of unemployed women in Thuringia was lower than in those two states.
The Federal Employment Agency's data shows that the number of long-term unemployed persons in Thuringia, both men and women, exceeded 22,600 in December. This figure has been consistently rising, with an increase of 400 from November 2023 and 2,700 from December 2022.
Source: www.stern.de
