TUESDAY, JULY 15, 1986
6
UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION STABLE IN MARCH-MAY
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THE UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION REMAINED STABLE WHILE THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT SITUATION DETERIORATED SLIGHTLY IN THE QUARTER MARCH-MAY 1986, COMPARED WITH THE QUARTER ENDING FEBRUARY 1986, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
THE COMMISSIONER FOR CENSUS AND STATISTICS POINTED OUT THAT THE DEFINITIONS OF UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT HAVE BEEN MODIFIED SINCE JANUARY 1985 TO CONFORM WITH THE LATEST RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO).
UNDER THE NEW DEFINITIONS, THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR MARCH-MAY 1986 WAS 3.0 PER CENT, WHICH WAS THE SAME AS THAT FOR THE QUARTER ENDING FEBRUARY 1986. THE RATE FOR MARCH-MAY 1985 WAS 3.1 PER CENT. THE DECREASE OF 0.1 PERCENTAGE POINT OVER THE SAME QUARTER OF LAST YEAR IS STATISTICALLY NOT SIGNIFICANT.
THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE QUARTER MARCH-MAY 1986 WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 80 300, COMPARED WITH 79 900 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING FEBRUARY 1986 AND 80 800 FOR THE SAME QUARTER OF LAST YEAR.
UNDER THE NEW DEFINITIONS, THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR MARCH-MAY 1986 WAS 2.4 PER CENT, WHICH COMPARES WITH THE RATE OF 2.0 PER CENT FOR THE QUARTER ENDING FEBRUARY 1986. THE RATE FOR MARCH-MAY 1985 WAS 1.3 PER CENT. THE INCREASES OF 0.4 PERCENTAGE POINT COMPARED WITH THE PREVIOUS QUARTER AND OF 1.1 PERCENTAGE POINT COMPARED WITH THE SAME QUARTER OF LAST YEAR ARE BOTH STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT THAT IS, THE INCREASES ARE GREATER THAN MIGHT BE EXPECTED TO ARISE FROM SAMPLING ERROR.
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THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF UNDEREMPLOYED PERSONS FOR THE QUARTER MARCH-MAY 1986 WAS 64 200, COMPARED WITH 53 900 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING FEBRUARY 1986 AND 34 600 FOR MARCH-MAY 1985. CONSISTENT WITH THE LATEST RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE ILO, PERSONS WHO WORKED LESS THAN 35 HOURS A WEEK DUE TO ECONOMIC REASONS (SUCH AS SLACK WORK, MATERIAL SHORTAGE, MECHANICAL BREAKDOWN AND INABILITY TO FIND FULL-TIME WORK) WERE REGARDED AS UNDEREMPLOYED ONLY IF THEY WERE EITHER SEEKING OR AVAILABLE FOR MORE WORK.
THE COMMISSIONER FOR CENSUS AND STATISTICS POINTED OUT THAT WHILE THE EFFECT OF THE MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION ON THE ESTIMATE OF UNEMPLOYMENT IS MARGINAL, ITS EFFECT ON THE ESTIMATE OF UNDEREMPLOYMENT IS QUITE CONSIDERABLE. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATES UNDER THE OLD AND THE NEW DEFINITIONS IS MAINLY ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE FACT THAT PERSONS WORKING LESS THAN 35 HOURS A WEEK FOR ECONOMIC REASONS WHO WERE NOT SEEKING MORE WORK BUT WERE AVAILABLE FOR ADDITIONAL WORK ARE REGARDED AS UNDEREMPLOYED UNDER THE NEW DEFINITIONS BUT NOT UNDER THE OLD DEFINITIONS.
/COMMENTING