XN000022-1987-05-14 — Page 6

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THURSDAY, MAY 14, 1987

UNEMPLOYMENT, UNDEREMPLOYMENT STATISTICS RELEASED

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THE UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION REMAINED STABLE WHILE THE

UNDER EMPLOYMENT SITUATION IMPROVED, IN THE QUARTER JANUARY – MARCH 1987, COMPARED WITH THE LAST QUARTER OF 1986, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY (THURSDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

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THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR JANUARY MARCH 1987 WAS 2.1 PER CENT, COMPARED WITH 2.2 PER CENT FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1986 AND 3.2 PER CENT FOR THE SAME QUARTER A YEAR EARLIER. THE DECREASE 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 A YEAR EARLIER IS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE QUARTER ENDING MARCH 1987 WAS ESTIMATED AT 54 800, LESS THAN THE FIGURES OF 59 400 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1986 AND OF 85 000 FOR THE SAME QUARTER ENDING MARCH 1986.

THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR JANUARY - MARCH 1987 WAS 1 PER CENT, WHICH COMPARES WITH 1.2 PER CENT FOR OCTOBER - DECEMBER 1986. THE RATE FOR JANUARY - MARCH 1986 WAS 2.3 PER CENT. THE DECREASES OF 0.2 PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE PREVIOUS QUARTER AND OF 1.3 PERCENTAGE POINTS BELOW THE SAME QUARTER A YEAR EARLIER ARE BOTH STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF UNDER EMPLOYED PERSONS FOR JANUARY - MARCH 1987 WAS 25 300, LESS THAN THE FIGURE OF 31 800 FOR OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1986 AND OF 61 700 FOR JANUARY - MARCH 1986, 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 ADDED THAT, BASED ON A SYSTEM OF MANUAL EXTRACTION OF INFORMATION FROM SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRES FOR THE LATEST MONTH, PROVISIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATES COVERING THE LATEST THREE-MONTH PERIOD COULD BE MADE AVAILABLE WITHIN TWO WEEKS AFTER THE SURVEY. THESE PROVIDE AN EARLY INDICATION OF THE LATEST TREND IN THE UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT SITUATION. THE PROVISIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT RATE (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED) FOR FEBRUARY - APRIL 1987 WAS 1.8 PER CENT AND THE PROVISIONAL UNDER EMPLOYMENT RATE WAS 0.9 PER CENT. (THE UNADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR JANUARY - MARCH 1987 WAS 1.9 PER CENT.)

THE UNEMPLOYMENT