MaltaMedia.com

The National Statistics Office has reported that the number of registered unemployed stood at 6,696 in October, implying a drop of 8.7 per cent over the corresponding month last year.

During October 2010 the number of registered unemployed stood at 6,696. In the twelve-month period to October, this number dropped by 637 or 8.7 per cent. During the period under review, persons registering for work in Malta amounted to 6,013 whereas the figure for Gozo was 683.

A comparison between October and September 2010 indicates that the number of registered unemployed increased by 41 or 0.6 per cent. This change was mainly attributable to a rise in the number of females registering for work.

As illustrated in Table 3, a total of 5,281 males were registering for work, with the majority aged 45 and over. Among females, the number of registered unemployed during October 2010 amounted to 1,415 - 1,173 in Malta and an additional 242 in Gozo.

Year on year, the number of persons registering for work for less than 20 weeks dropped by 8.0 per cent and persons who had been registering for work for 21-52 weeks decreased by 22.5 per cent.

Information relating to the occupations being sought by the unemployed is provided. The majority sought occupations related to services, sales and crafts whereas females sought clerical and service-oriented occupations.

During May 2010, the registered unemployment rate stood at 4.6 per cent of the labour supply (excluding part-timers). The rate for males was 5.4 per cent whereas that for females stood at 3.0 per cent.

The unemployment rate of persons who had been registering for work for more than 12 months under Part 1 (long-term unemployment rate) stood at 1.7 per cent.

Among workers aged 45 and over the unemployment rate was 4.9 per cent. The rate in respect of young people (under 25) stood at 5.4 per cent.