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In August, 151,111 people were registered as unemployed in the regional employment centers (RAV). Our graph shows the differences according to cantons, age and gender.
The unemployment rate rose compared to the previous month from 3.2 to 3.3 percent.
Photo: Keystone
Unemployment in Switzerland increased in August, especially among young people. The unemployment rate rose compared to the previous month to 3.3 percent from 3.2 percent, as announced on Wednesday by the Secretary of State for the Economy (Seco).
The seasonally adjusted rate was unchanged at 3.4 percent.
A total of 151’111 people in Switzerland were registered as unemployed at the regional job placement centers (RAV) in August. That was 2,241 more than the previous month.
Compared to the same month last year, the number was vastly higher, that is, at 51,559 people. At that time, that is, in the pre-Crown period, the rate was still 2.1 percent.
Odds for August were in line with expectations. Economists had previously seen the unemployment rate in the range of 3.2 and 3.4 percent and the seasonally adjusted figure at 3.3 to 3.4 percent.
Higher youth unemployment
Disaggregated by age, unemployment increased especially among children. The rate among 15-24 year olds rose to 3.9 percent after being 3.4 percent the previous month.
It is common for the rate for this age group to rise in the summer, said Boris Zürcher, head of the Labor Directorate of the State Secretariat for the Economy (Seco), in a conference call on Wednesday. The reason is that the apprenticeship graduation usually takes place in the summer and then the boys go looking for work.
“This increase is one of the strongest in recent years,” continued Zürcher. Less hiring is being done due to the fallout from the crown crisis.
The office now wants to keep an eye on future developments. Typically, most of these intern graduates would find a job in the fall and winter. If this also applies in the days of Corona, “it will be observed,” said Zürcher.
For those aged 25 to 49 years (3.4%) and those aged 50 to 64 (2.9%), the rates remained unchanged from the previous month.
Short-term work is declining
Even if the unemployment rate in all age groups changed only slightly in August compared to the previous month, it is significantly higher than in the pre-Crown period. The quota measured for August is the highest in 10 years, Zürcher said.
A year ago, the all-time lows were measured at a rate of 2.1 percent. Since then, the number of unemployed has increased by almost 52,000, which is almost the same as the population of the city of Biel.
For Zürcher, however, it is clear that without the instrument of short-time work, unemployment would have risen much more during the crisis.
The Seco expert calculated the corresponding estimated rates in a “rough estimate” for the months of March and April at “more than 10 percent” (instead of 2.9%) rsp. to “more than 20 per cent” (instead of 3.3%).
This estimated rate subsequently fell back to a good 8 percent in June. “Therefore, short-time work has greatly helped prevent unemployment from skyrocketing,” said Zürcher.
“High unemployment in the shade”
In this context, however, economists at the Raiffeisen banking group write about a “high level of shadow unemployment.” See the risk of a permanent reduction in the fall. Because several of the financial reliefs that would have been applied during the crisis have expired. At the same time, many companies still have low levels of capacity utilization.
However, Seco has yet to see signs of an impending wave of bankruptcies and layoffs. According to Zürcher, the records of mass layoffs are an indication of this. Between March and August, 139 companies announced such a measure for around 8,000 jobs. For comparison: at the end of August, more than 151,000 people were registered as unemployed.
