XN000022-1987-02-14 — Page 2

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1987

UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT STATISTICS RELEASED

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THE UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION IMPROVED WHILE THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT SITUATION REMAINED STABLE IN THE QUARTER OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1986 COMPARED WITH THE QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1986, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1986 WAS 2.2 PER CENT, COMPARED WITH THE RATES OF 2.8 PER CENT FOK THE QUARTER END ING SEPTEMBER 1986 AND 3.1 PER CENT FOR THE SAME QUARTER IN 1985.

THE DECREASES OF 0.6 PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE PREVIOUS QUARTER AND OF 0.9 PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE SAME QUARTER OF 1985 ARE BOTH STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT.

THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE PERIOD OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1986 WAS ESTIMATED AT 59 400, LESS THAN THE FIGURE OF 75 000 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1986 AND OF 83 300 FOR THE SAME QUARTER OF 1985.

A GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT 2.2 PER CENT IS THE LOWEST UNEMPLOYMENT RATE RECORDED SINCE THE NEW SERIES OF UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS WAS INTRODUCED IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1985. WITH THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE AT SUCH A LOW LEVEL, THE LABOUR FORCE AS A WHOLE WAS EFFECTIVELY FULLY EMPLOYED.

THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1986 WAS 1.2 PER CENT, WHICH COMPARED WITH THE RATE OF 1.3 PER CENT FOR THE QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1986. THE RATE FOR OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1985 WAS 2.3 PER CENT.

THE DECREASES OF 0.1 PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE PREVIOUS QUARTER IS STATISTICALLY NOT SIGNIFICANT, WHILE THE DECREASE OF 1.1 PERCENTAGE POINTS BELOW THE SAME QUARTER OF 1985 IS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT.

THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF UNDEREMPLOYED PERSONS FOR OCTOBER- DECEMBER 1986 WAS 31 800, COMPARED WITH THE FIGURE OF 36 600 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1986 AND OF 62 100 FOR OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1985.

CONSISTENT WITH THE CURRENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (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.

COMMENTING ON THESE FIGURES, THE COMMISSIONER FOR CENSUS AND STATISTICS SAID THAT BECAUSE THE PROPORTION OF FIRST-TIME JOB-SEEKERS (THAT IS PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST LEFT SCHOOL) VARIES FROM MONTH TO MONTH, UNEMPLOYMENT RATES THAT HAD BEEN SEASONALLY ADJUSTED TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE VARIATIONS IN THE NUMBER OF FIRST-TIME JOB-SEEKERS SHOULD BE USED IN MAKING COMPARISONS OVER TIME.

/THE COMMISSIONER