XN000022-1989-04-14 — Page 3

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FRIDAY, APRIL 14, 1989

UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT STATISTICS FOR DEC FEB RELEASED

BOTH THE UNEMPLOYMENT

REMAINED AT A VERY LOW LEVEL

RATE AND THE UNDEREMPOLYMENT RATE DURING THE PERIOD DECEMBER 1988 FEBRUARY 1989, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY (FRIDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

THESE FIGURES SHOW THAT THE LABOUR MARKET STILL VERY TIGHT,

CONDITIONS WERE

1988

THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR DECEMBER FEBRUARY 1989 WAS 1.2 PER CENT COMPARED WITH 1.

.3 .PER CENT FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING NOVEMBER 1988 AND 1.6 PER CENT FOR THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD A YEAR EARLIER.

THE DECREASE OF 0.1 OF A PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE PRECEDING THREE MONTHS PERIOD IS STATISTICALLY NOT SIGNIFICANT WHILE THE DECREASE OF 0.4 OF A PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD A YEAR EARLIER IS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT.

FEBRUARY

THE NUMBER OF UNEMPOLYED PERSONS IN DECEMBER 1988 1989 WAS ESTIMATED AT 33,600, COMPARED WITH 36,900 FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING NOVEMBER 1988 AND 44,600 FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY 1988.

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THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR DECEMBER 1988 FEBRUARY 1989 WAS 0.6 PER CENT, WHICH WAS THE SAME AS THAT FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING NOVEMBER 1988. THE RATE FOR DECEMBER 1987 FEBRUARY 1988 WAS 0.8 PER CENT.

THE DECREASE OF 0.2 OF A PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD A YEAR EARLIER 18 STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT.

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THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF UNDEREMPLOYED PERSONS FOR DECEMBER 1988

THE FEBRUARY 1989 WAS 17,200, COMPARED WITH 18,100 FOR

THREE MONTHS ENDING NOVEMBER 1988 AND 22,700 FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY 1988.

CONSISTENT WITH THE CURRENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF

THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO), PERSONS WHO WORKED LESS THAN 36 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 UNDEREMPOLYED ONLY IF THEY WERE EITHER SEEKING OR AVAILABLE FOR MORE WORK.

CENSUS AND JOB-SEEKERS

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

JOB-SEEKERS

THE COMMISSIONER