The registered unemployment rate in Belarus as of April 1st was 0.7%
11/04/20120 views
11 April, Minsk /Elena Prus - BELTA/. In Belarus, as of April 1 of the current year, registered unemployment remained at 0.7% of the economically active population, the head of the employment policy department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, Nikolai Kokhonov, told BELTA correspondent.
As of April 1, 2011, this indicator was also 0.7%.
In March of this year, unemployment decreased by 0.1 percentage points in one region of the country - Mogilev region (to 0.7%). In the other regions, registered unemployment remained at the previous level: in Gomel region - 1%, in Brest, Grodno and Vitebsk regions - 0.8%, in Minsk region - 0.6%, in Minsk - 0.3%.
"The situation is characterised by an increase in the number of vacancies and a decrease in the registration of unemployed persons," said Nikolai Kokhonov. "There is a seasonal recovery in the republic's labour market: employers' demand for labour is growing, which means that employment opportunities are expanding."
The number of vacant jobs in Belarus in March increased by 2.2 thousand, based on employer applications, and exceeded 56.9 thousand as of April 1. This is the maximum figure for the last five years, the ministry representative emphasised. For example, as of April 1, 2008, there were 56.3 thousand vacancies, as of April 1, 2011 - 56.5 thousand, and the lowest figure was as of April 1, 2010 - 39.8 thousand vacant jobs.
In Belarus, as of April 1, 31 thousand people were registered as unemployed with the labour, employment and social protection authorities - 7.7% less compared to April 1, 2011. In March, the number of registered unemployed decreased by 0.5 thousand people. As the analysis of similar data for the past five years shows, the largest number of unemployed registered as of April 1 was in 2007 - 51.7 thousand people.
As for the registration of unemployed persons in the first quarter, the figure for 2012 is 5.2% lower than the corresponding figure for the first quarter of 2011: in January-March, 49.4 thousand people were granted unemployed status, while in January-March of last year, the figure was 52.1 thousand.
"Current labour market trends suggest that no deterioration in the employment situation is expected in the coming months," emphasised Nikolay Kokhonov. At the same time, he added, a detailed analysis of the situation is necessary, including consideration of the "Russian factor," to determine future labour force mobility, assess the impact of modernisation on human resources, and study the structure of the unemployed population (based on the results of a sample household survey conducted in Belarus in February).
According to operational data, in January-March of the current year, the number of applications to the state employment service for assistance in finding employment decreased by 2.8% to 68.4 thousand, and the number of people seeking employment decreased by 7% (114 thousand people, of whom 77.6 thousand were unemployed). The number of people employed also decreased by 3.6% (in January-March 2012, 42.8 thousand people found employment with the assistance of labour, employment and social protection bodies).
As previously reported by BELTA, the Council of Ministers has approved the State Programme for Employment Promotion of the Population of the Republic of Belarus for 2012. As a result of the implementation of the state programme measures, by the end of the current year, the registered unemployment rate will not exceed 1.5% of the economically active population. Key objectives include maintaining a stable employment situation; integrating vulnerable population groups into the workforce; improving the system of training and retraining of personnel in line with the needs of economic development; and providing information, career guidance, and methodological support for employment. Furthermore, the achievement of these objectives will be pursued not only through traditional, proven measures (assisting employers in creating jobs, helping the unemployed to become self-employed, vocational training for the unemployed, adapting people with disabilities to work, relocation for new jobs and residences) but also by incorporating new approaches. Programme priorities include improving labour market monitoring and assisting employers in the structural transformation of the economy.
The programme is financed by the Social Protection Fund of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, including through subventions transferred to the budgets of the regions and Minsk. Almost Br226 billion will be allocated for the implementation of the state programme measures in 2012. -0-BELTA