The percentage of unemployed in Italy decreases, but the figure for employed persons also slightly decreases and that of inactive persons increases. This is the photograph of the month of July, compared to the previous one, taken today by Istat, which stressed that the pre-pandemic levels of February 2020 have not yet been returned, with a number of less employed by over 260 thousand units.
In detail, the decrease in employment (-0.1%, equal to -23 thousand units), observed for men and women, concerns only the self-employed and all those who fall into the age groups over 35, while the rate of employment is stable at 58.4%. The decrease in the number of people looking for work (-1.2% compared to June, equal to -29 thousand units) is concentrated mainly among men and young people aged between 15-24, with an unemployment rate that it drops to 9.3% (-0.1 points) and among young people to 27.7% (-1.6 points). The inactivity rate, on the other hand, rises to 35.5% (+0.1 points): in the comparison between June and July the number of inactive people aged between 15 and 64 increases (+ 0.2%, equal to +28 thousand united), with an increase that generally involves only men and all age groups with the exception of 25-34 year olds.
Comparing the May-July 2021 quarter with the previous one (February-April), the level of employment is higher by 1.4%, with an increase of 317 thousand units. The growth in employment, in a quarterly comparison, is associated with the decrease in people seeking employment (-5%, equal to -125 thousand units) and that of inactive persons between 15 and 64 years (-1.8%, equal to -249 thousand units). Despite a moderate decline in the number of employed persons and a stability in the employment rate in July, the strong growth recorded in the previous five months resulted in a balance compared to January 2021 of 550,000 more employed, with fixed-term employees who are grew by more than 300 thousand units and the higher occupancy rate of 1.6 percentage points.
Following the recovery of employment recorded between February and June, the number of employees in July of this year is 2% higher than that of July 2020 (+ 440 thousand units), with still negative variations recorded for the self-employed and for workers between 35 and 49 years old. However, the employment rate, up 1.4 percentage points, rises for all age groups. Compared to July 2020, both the number of job seekers (-6.9%, equal to -173 thousand units) and that of inactive persons between 15 and 64 years (-3.5%, equal to -484 thousand), decreases, which had increased dramatically at the start of the health emergency.
“Even if, compared to the previous quarter, employment increased by 1.4%, by 317 thousand units, employment is not growing at the rate of the extraordinary economic growth of the country”, highlights Lucio Poma, chief economist of Nomisma, explaining that this happens “because the country’s growth is asymmetrical. The figure of + 2.7% in the second quarter hides a different reality, adding to the compensation. A group of companies (the companies against the wind) grows at a much faster rate than 2 , 7% and another group of companies is growing at a slower pace and sometimes even decreasing. This is a consequence of the industrial transformation that the country is experiencing: the Industry 4.0 revolution “, concludes Poma. (All rights reserved)
