In 2023, South Africa had the highest unemployment rate in the world, at 32.1 percent. Of the 10 countries with the highest unemployment rates, six were in Sub-Saharan Africa. What exactly is unemployment? The unemployment rate is the number of people in the workforce currently looking for jobs but not working. This number does not include students and retirees, as they are not looking for work, nor does it include people who have given up on finding a job (known as discouraged workers). Comparing international unemployment rates can be problematic, however, as different countries use different methodologies when classifying unemployment. For example, Niger records the third lowest unemployment rate in the world, despite often being listed as the least developed country worldwide - this is because the majority of the population engage in subsistence farming, with very little opportunity for paid employment. Causes of unemployment in less developed countries A major driver in unemployment in these countries is conflict. In particular, internally displaced persons (IDPs) want to work, but moving to another part of the country disrupts their business network and moves them into a local economy with different labor demand. Countries with low levels of economic development, as roughly indicated by a low GDP per capita, often have fewer labor market opportunities, leading to high unemployment rates.

In 1990, the unemployment rate of the United States stood at 5.6 percent. Since then there have been many significant fluctuations to this number - the 2008 financial crisis left millions of people without work, as did the COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of 2022 and throughout 2023, the unemployment rate came to 3.6 percent, the lowest rate seen for decades. However, 2024 saw an increase up to four percent. For monthly updates on unemployment in the United States visit either the monthly national unemployment rate here, or the monthly state unemployment rate here. Both are seasonally adjusted. UnemploymentUnemployment is defined as a situation when an employed person is laid off, fired or quits his work and is still actively looking for a job. Unemployment can be found even in the healthiest economies, and many economists consider an unemployment rate at or below five percent to mean there is 'full employment' within an economy. If former employed persons go back to school or leave the job to take care of children they are no longer part of the active labor force and therefore not counted among the unemployed. Unemployment can also be the effect of events that are not part of the normal dynamics of an economy. Layoffs can be the result of technological progress, for example when robots replace workers in automobile production. Sometimes unemployment is caused by job outsourcing, due to the fact that employers often search for cheap labor around the globe and not only domestically. In 2022, the tech sector in the U.S. experienced significant lay-offs amid growing economic uncertainty. In the fourth quarter of 2022, more than 70,000 workers were laid off, despite low unemployment nationwide. The unemployment rate in the United States varies from state to state. In 2021, California had the highest number of unemployed persons with 1.38 million out of work.

Unemployment Rate in the United States decreased to 4.10 percent in June from 4.20 percent in May of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Regional unemployment rates used by the Employment Insurance program, by effective date, current month.

In April 2025, the agriculture and related private wage and salary workers industry had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, at eight percent. In comparison, government workers had the lowest unemployment rate, at 1.8 percent. The average for all industries was 3.9 percent. U.S. unemployment There are several factors that impact unemployment, as it fluctuates with the state of the economy. Unfortunately, the forecasted unemployment rate in the United States is expected to increase as we head into the latter half of the decade. Those with a bachelor’s degree or higher saw the lowest unemployment rate from 1992 to 2022 in the United States, which is attributed to the fact that higher levels of education are seen as more desirable in the workforce. Nevada unemployment Nevada is one of the states with the highest unemployment rates in the country and Vermont typically has one of the lowest unemployment rates. These are seasonally adjusted rates, which means that seasonal factors such as holiday periods and weather events that influence employment periods are removed. Nevada's economy consists of industries that are currently suffering high unemployment rates such as tourism. As of May 2023, about 5.4 percent of Nevada's population was unemployed, possibly due to the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

In December 2024, Nevada had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, with an unemployment rate of 5.7. The unemployment rate was also high in the District of Columbia, with an unemployment rate of 5.6 percent in December. Unemployment in the U.S. A person is considered unemployed if they have no job and are currently looking for a job and available to work. The unemployment rate in the United States varies across states. Nation-wide unemployment was 3.4 percent as of April 2023. Unemployment can be affected by various factors including economic conditions and global competition. During economic prosperity, unemployment rates generally decrease and during times of recession, rates increase. The seasons can also have an impact on the unemployment rate, especially during winter, when there is lower demand for construction workers or other professionals who typically work outdoors. The retail sector also experiences fluctuating demand for workers, particularly during the holiday-shopping season, when demand for workers increases. For this reason, labor statistics are usually presented as being either seasonally adjusted or unadjusted. The data presented in this statistic have been seasonally adjusted, but the monthly unadjusted unemployment rate can be accessed here.

In 2023, it was estimated that over 161 million Americans were in some form of employment, while 3.64 percent of the total workforce was unemployed. This was the lowest unemployment rate since the 1950s, although these figures are expected to rise in 2023 and beyond. 1980s-2010s Since the 1980s, the total United States labor force has generally risen as the population has grown, however, the annual average unemployment rate has fluctuated significantly, usually increasing in times of crisis, before falling more slowly during periods of recovery and economic stability. For example, unemployment peaked at 9.7 percent during the early 1980s recession, which was largely caused by the ripple effects of the Iranian Revolution on global oil prices and inflation. Other notable spikes came during the early 1990s; again, largely due to inflation caused by another oil shock, and during the early 2000s recession. The Great Recession then saw the U.S. unemployment rate soar to 9.6 percent, following the collapse of the U.S. housing market and its impact on the banking sector, and it was not until 2016 that unemployment returned to pre-recession levels. 2020s 2019 had marked a decade-long low in unemployment, before the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic saw the sharpest year-on-year increase in unemployment since the Great Depression, and the total number of workers fell by almost 10 million people. Despite the continuation of the pandemic in the years that followed, alongside the associated supply-chain issues and onset of the inflation crisis, unemployment reached just 3.67 percent in 2022 - current projections are for this figure to rise in 2023 and the years that follow, although these forecasts are subject to change if recent years are anything to go by.

Employment Rate in the United States remained unchanged at 59.70 percent in June. This dataset provides - United States Employment Rate- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The average for 2025 based on 101 countries was 6.64 percent. The highest value was in Sudan: 61.99 percent and the lowest value was in Thailand: 1 percent. The indicator is available from 1980 to 2030. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The statistic reflects the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in member states of the European Union in November 2024. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Spain in November 2024 was 11.2 percent.The unemployment rate represents the share of the unemployed in all potential employees available to the job market. Unemployment rates in the EU The unemployment rate is an important measure of a country or region’s economic health, and despite unemployment levels in the European Union falling slightly from a peak in early 2013 , they remain high, especially in comparison to what the rates were before the worldwide recession started in 2008. This confirms the continuing stagnation in European markets, which hits young job seekers particularly hard as they struggle to compete against older, more experienced workers for a job, suffering under jobless rates twice as high as general unemployment. Some companies, such as Microsoft and Fujitsu, have created thousands of jobs in some of the countries which have particularly dire unemployment rates, creating a beacon of hope. However, some industries such as information technology, face the conundrum of a deficit of qualified workers in the local unemployed work force, and have to hire workers from abroad instead of helping decrease the local unemployment rates. This skills mismatch has no quick solution, as workers require time for retraining to fill the openings in the growing science-, technology-, or engineering-based jobs, and too few students choose degrees that would help them obtain these positions. Worldwide unemployment also remains high, with the rates being worst in the Middle East and North Africa. Estimates by the International Labour Organization predict that the problem will stabilize in coming years, but not improve until at least 2017.

This dataset provides values for UNEMPLOYMENT RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Unemployment rate, participation rate, and employment rate by educational attainment, gender and age group, annual.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 20 Yrs. & over (LNS14000024) from Jan 1948 to Jun 2025 about 20 years +, household survey, unemployment, rate, and USA.

World unemployment rate for 2024 was 4.89%, a 0.02% decline from 2023.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li>World unemployment rate for 2023 was <strong>4.92%</strong>, a <strong>0.34% decline</strong> from 2022.</li>
<li>World unemployment rate for 2022 was <strong>5.26%</strong>, a <strong>0.8% decline</strong> from 2021.</li>
<li>World unemployment rate for 2021 was <strong>6.06%</strong>, a <strong>0.54% decline</strong> from 2020.</li>
</ul>Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment.

Enquête naar de arbeidskrachten (EAK) Doel en korte beschrijving De steekproefenquête naar de arbeidskrachten is een enquête bij particuliere huishoudens, die gedurende het hele jaar wordt gehouden. Ze is gebaseerd op de antwoorden van ongeveer 110.000 personen (respondenten) van 15-89 jaar. Haar voornaamste doelstelling is de populatie van 15-89 jaar op te delen in drie groepen (nl. werkende personen, werklozen en niet-beroepsactieve personen), en over elk van deze categorieën beschrijvende en verklarende gegevens te verstrekken. Deze enquête wordt ook in de andere EU-lidstaten uitgevoerd en wordt gecoördineerd door de statistische dienst van de Europese Unie, EUROSTAT. In België wordt de EAK georganiseerd door Statbel (Algemene Directie Statistiek - Statistics Belgium). De bedoeling is informatie te vergaren die op Europees vlak vergelijkbaar is, o.m. inzake werkgelegenheids- en werkloosheidscijfers overeenkomstig de definities van het Internationaal Arbeidsbureau (IAB), en daarnaast gegevens te verzamelen en te verspreiden die elders niet verkregen kunnen worden. Voorbeelden hiervan zijn mobiliteit van de werknemers, motivatie voor deeltijds werken, de verschillende vormen van tijdelijke arbeid, beroep, onderwijsniveau van de bevolking op beroepsactieve leeftijd,… Populatie Leden van privé-huishoudens van 15-89 jaar Basis van de steekproef Demografische gegevens van het Rijksregister Dataverzamelingsmethode en eventuele steekproefomvang De informatie wordt voor de eerste bevraging verzameld via face to face interviews. Sinds 2017 volgen daarna nog drie kortere opvolgbevragingen die via het web of telefonisch gebeuren. Gezinnen die uitsluitend bestaan uit niet-beroepsactieve personen ouder dan 64 jaar mogen ook telefonisch worden bevraagd. Jaarlijks nemen in België ongeveer 34.000 unieke huishoudens deel aan deze enquête. Respons Gemiddeld bedraagt de respons in de eerste bevraging 68% en in de opvolgbevragingen tussen de 90% en 95%. Frequentie Driemaandelijks. Timing publicatie Resultaten beschikbaar +/- 3 maanden na de referentieperiode Formulieren Enquête naar de arbeidskrachten 2024 (PDF, 1 Mb) Definities De enquête is geharmoniseerd op Europees niveau. De definities over werkgelegenheid en werkloosheid die worden gehanteerd zijn die van het Internationaal Arbeidsbureau (IAB), waardoor een vergelijkbaarheid van de resultaten op internationaal vlak wordt gewaarborgd. Personen met een job (werkende personen) zijn personen die gedurende de referentieweek arbeid verrichtten ‘tegen betaling’ of met als doel ‘winst te maken’ ongeacht de duur (ook al was dit maar één uur), of die een job hadden maar tijdelijk afwezig waren. Men kan bijvoorbeeld tijdelijk afwezig zijn omwille van vakantie, ziekte, technische of economische redenen (tijdelijke werkloosheid),…. Ook de meewerkende familieleden worden tot de werkenden gerekend. Sinds 2021 worden personen die een ononderbroken periode van langer dan drie maanden tijdelijke werkloos zijn bij de werklozen of niet-beroepsactieven gerekend en niet meer bij de werkenden. Werklozen zijn alle personen die: (a) tijdens de referentieweek geen werk hadden, d.w.z. niet in loondienst of als zelfstandige werkten; (b) voor werk beschikbaar waren, d.w.z. voor werk in loondienst of als zelfstandige beschikbaar waren binnen twee weken na de referentieweek; (c) actief werk zochten, d.w.z. gedurende de laatste vier weken met inbegrip van de referentieweek gerichte stappen hadden ondernomen om werk in loondienst of als zelfstandige te zoeken, of die werk hadden gevonden en binnen ten hoogste drie maanden zouden beginnen te werken. Opgelet! De IAB‐werkloosheidscijfers staan los van een eventuele inschrijving bij VDAB, Actiris, FOREM of ADG, evenals van het ontvangen van een uitkering van de RVA, en zijn dus niet vergelijkbaar met de administratieve werkloosheidscijfers. De beroepsbevolking is samengesteld uit de werkloze en de werkende bevolking. Niet‐beroepsactieven zijn alle personen die niet beschouwd worden als personen met een betrekking of als werklozen. De werkgelegenheidsgraad geeft het percentage werkende personen in een bepaalde leeftijdsgroep weer. De werkgelegenheidsgraad in het kader van de Europa 2020‐strategie geeft het percentage werkende personen in de bevolking van 20 tot 64 jaar weer. De werkloosheidsgraad geeft het percentage werklozen in de beroepsbevolking (werkende personen + werklozen) binnen een bepaalde leeftijdsgroep weer. De activiteitsgraad geeft het percentage beroepsbevolking (werkende personen + werklozen) in de totale bevolking binnen een bepaalde leeftijdsgroep weer. Bovenstaande indicatoren (werkgelegenheidsgraad, werkloosheidsgraad en activiteitsgraad) zijn de belangrijkste indicatoren om de arbeidsmarktevolutie op internationaal niveau te vergelijken. Laaggeschoolden zijn die personen die maximaal een diploma hebben van het lager secundair onderwijs. Middengeschoolden zijn personen die een diploma behaald hebben van het hoger secundair onderwijs, maar geen diploma van het hoger onderwijs. Hooggeschoolden hebben een diploma van het hoger onderwijs. Metadata Werkgelegenheid, werkloosheid, arbeidsmarkt.pdf Enquête naar de arbeidskrachten (EAK).pdf Methodologie enquêtes Wijzigingen in de Enquête naar de arbeidskrachten (EAK) in 2021 EAK: De methodologische verbeteringen in de Enquête naar de Arbeidskrachten 2017 (PDF, 98 Kb) EAK: voorstelling van de enquête vanaf 2017 (PDF, 105.77 Kb) EAK: voorstelling van de enquête tot 2016 (PDF, 98.44 Kb) Nota naar aanleiding van publicatie gegevens T4 2024 & jaarresultaten 2024 (pdf) Wetgeving Koninklijk besluit 10 JANUARI 1999 betreffende een steekproefenquête naar de arbeidskrachten (PDF, 17.26 Kb) Koninklijk besluit tot wijziging van het koninklijk besluit van 10 januari 1999 betreffende een steekproefenquête naar de arbeidskrachten (PDF, 17.48 Kb)

Unemployment Rate in Canada decreased to 6.90 percent in June from 7 percent in May of 2025. This dataset provides - Canada Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In February 2025, the unemployment rate for those aged 16 and over in the United States came to 4.5 percent. Service occupations had an unemployment rate of 6.3 percent in that month. The underemployment rate of the country can be accessed here and the monthly unemployment rate here. Unemployment by occupation in the U.S. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics publish data on the unemployment situation within certain occupations in the United States on a monthly basis. According to latest data released from May 2023, transportation and material moving occupations experienced the highest level of unemployment that month, with a rate of around 5.6 percent. Second ranked was farming, fishing, and forestry occupations with a rate of 4.9 percent. Total (not seasonally adjusted) unemployment was reported at 3.6 percent in March 2023. Other data on the U.S. unemployment rate by industry and class of worker shows comparable results. It should be noted that the data were not seasonally adjusted to account for normal seasonal fluctuations in unemployment. The monthly unemployment by occupation data can be compared to the seasonally adjusted monthly unemployment rate. In March 2023, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.5 percent, which was an increase from the previous month. The annual unemployment rate in 2022 was 3.6 percent, down from a high of 9.6 in 2010. Unemployment in the United States trended downward after the coronavirus pandemic, and is now experiencing consistently low rates - a sign of economic stability. Individuals who opt to leave the workforce and stop looking for employment are not included among the unemployed. The civilian labor force participation rate in the U.S. rose to 62.2 percent in 2022, down from 67.1 percent in 2000, before the financial crisis.

Number of persons in the labour force (employment and unemployment), unemployment rate, participation rate and employment rate by age group and gender. Data are presented for 12 months earlier, previous month and current month, as well as year-over-year and month-to-month level change and percentage change. Data are also available for the standard error of the estimate, the standard error of the month-to-month change and the standard error of the year-over-year change.

This dataset provides values for EMPLOYMENT RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Unemployment Rate in Spain increased to 11.36 percent in the first quarter of 2025 from 10.61 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Spain Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.