Recent unemployment figures in Romania
The number of people without a job increased slightly in Romania in August. The 0.1% increase in unemployment, however, indicates a slowdown in economic activity and constitutes a warning for the authorities.
Sorin Iordan, 03.10.2024, 13:50
The unemployment rate in Romania increased slightly in August compared to July, by 0.1%, and reached 5.5%, the National Institute of Statistics (INS) announced. Thus, the number of people aged between 15 and 74, without a job, was estimated at 452,300 a higher figure compared to August 2023. For the adults aged 25 to 74, the unemployment rate was estimated at 4.4% in August. Although this indicator represents more than three quarters of the total number of unemployed, Romania is not yet in an urgent situation, as it was a few years ago, economic analyst Aurelian Dochia said.
However, he believes that these figures are a warning, because they announce a slowdown in economic activity. Aurelian Dochia: “Although everyone expects that the lowering of interest rates, which the National Bank has started for some time, should lead to a revival of economic activity, there are many factors, primarily of an external nature, I would say – the dynamics of the European economies, what happens in the world, geopolitical tensions and wars – which have a very strong impact on the economy. All of these things I think are likely to cause concern about the economy. We already see that in Romania, there are all kinds of foreign or national firms and companies announcing they are abandoning or postponing their investment plans, which confirms this tendency of the economy to slow down and this concern about the perspective for the end of this year and for 2025.”
Regarding youth unemployment, it reached 23.2% in August, almost 2% higher than in the same month last year. The economic analyst said that one of the causes is the fact that many young people allow themselves to have a period of inactivity, in which to evaluate their prospects, what kind of job they should choose and what activities are compatible with their talents. Aurelian Dochia: “It is something related, unfortunately, to the quality of young people’s professional training. There is not always an adequacy of the young people’s professional training structure with what is required on the labor market, and then there are many young people who complete a form of training and do not find a job for the training they have. Consequently, efforts must be made to improve the situation, both by the education system, and by the young people, who need to be guided towards jobs and professions that are in demand on the market.”
The unemployment figures recorded in Romania are significantly influenced by the high number of Romanians who choose to work abroad. The vacuum created by them on the labor market is filled by foreign workers, especially from non-EU countries, such as Nepal, Turkey, the Republic of Moldova, Sri Lanka and India. According to a study carried out by the Foundation for the Development of Civil Society, over 200,000 foreign workers were on the Romanian labor market in 2023. About 80% of them performed unskilled jobs in sectors like constructions, services, hospitality and retail.
