Credit: ADEM

The unemployment rate in Luxembourg dropped to 6% in August this year, a figure which is 0.4% below that of August 2016.

The number of available resident job seekers registered with ADEM as of 31 August 2017 was 15,850. Over one year, this represents a decrease of 516 persons or 3.2%. The unemployment rate stands at 6%, ie 0.4 points below the August 2016 figure.

The decline particularly concerns jobseekers under the age of 30, whose number has dropped by 6.4% compared to August 2016, while the number of job seekers older than 50 has stagnated. Low-skilled jobseekers, who have attained the maximum equivalent of 11th or 3rd grade, have also benefitted from favourable labour market conditions.

On the other hand, the number of jobseekers with higher education is up by 1.8% in one year. In this category, it is again the older job-seekers who find it harder to find a job: the number of people aged 50 and over looking for a job has risen by 6%, while the number of applicants aged under 30 has witnessed a drop of 8%.

During August 2017, employers reported 2,602 vacancies at ADEM, 228 fewer than in August 2016. Nevertheless, the number of posts declared in the first 8 months of 2017 is 5% above the level of the first eight months of 2016. As of 31 August 2017, ADEM recorded 6,374 vacancies in its files, a 9% increase compared to 31 August 2016.