In September, the unemployment rate in the Czech Republic increased to 3.9%, up from 3.8% in August. This marks a 0.3 percentage point rise compared to the same period last year, as reported by the Czech Labor Office. The Ústí nad Labem region recorded the highest unemployment rate at 6.2%, while Prague had the lowest at 2.9%.

By the end of September, the number of unemployed individuals reached 290,905, an increase of 4,585 from the previous month. On a positive note, job vacancies also rose by 1,400, bringing the total to 264,654. The Labor Office highlighted that the number of job seekers still exceeds the number of available positions, although job placements have reached a record high. In September, the office successfully placed 31,845 job seekers, the highest number since records began in 1993.

Despite many people finding new employment relatively quickly, unemployment in the Czech Republic has been gradually rising over the past year. This trend is largely due to companies, particularly in the industrial sector, reducing their workforce. The decline in early retirement popularity this year has made layoffs more noticeable in the overall statistics. This September’s unemployment rate is the highest in eight years, and with economic growth too slow to create new jobs rapidly, unemployment is expected to continue rising for the remainder of the year.

Analysts predict a slight increase in unemployment in the coming months as seasonal work concludes. The unemployment rate is projected to reach 4.1%, returning to levels seen in 2018. Looking ahead to next year, analysts expect unemployment to peak and then decline as economic recovery begins to generate more job opportunities.

Source: ceskenoviny.cz

Author: CzechTrade Office in New York