Chart 10
The Unemployment and Underemployment Rates
Per cent
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
Underemployment rate
2
1
0
Seasonally adjusted unemployment rate
The Economy 1 53
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
2004
2005
|
2006
2007
2008
The downtrend in the unemployment rate was reversed from the third quarter as the labour market conditions worsened upon the onset of the global financial crisis.
Total employment growth decelerated from 2.4 per cent in 2007 to 1.6 per cent in 2008, though it still outpaced labour supply growth (1.0 per cent). Employment growth in fact decelerated during the course of the year, with the year-on-year growth eventually lagging behind labour supply growth towards the year-end (Chart 11). Total employment reached 3 544 300 in the fourth quarter of 2008. While the business services, financing, and repair, laundry, domestic and miscellaneous personal services sectors were the major sources of job creation for the year, notable job losses were seen in the manufacturing, construction (especially decoration and maintenance) and wholesale trade sectors.
On the other hand, the number of job vacancies in the private sector plunged by 33.1 per cent year-on-year to 32 200 in December 2008. This translated into a ratio of 23 job vacancies for every 100 unemployed persons in December 2008, down from 41 a year earlier. The corresponding ratio for higher-skilled jobs fell from 106 to 47, while that for lower-skilled jobs went down from 33 to 20.
Job vacancies decreased in nearly all sectors in December 2008, with more visible declines in the import and export trade, recreational and other personal services, and business services sectors. Yet, increase was mainly seen in the restaurants sector.
For 2008 as a whole, labour earnings measured by payroll per person engaged in the private sector rose by 2.6 per cent in money terms but fell by 1.7 per cent in real terms. With the labour market conditions apparently easing in the latter part of 2008, labour earnings in the private sector registered a year-on-year decline in the fourth quarter of 2008, by 2.1 per cent in money terms and 4.3 per cent in real terms. Employees in the financing, insurance, real estate and business services sector