Unemployment Rate: 2008 Countries
| Countries | Unemployment Rate | Ch. | Ann. ch. | Month | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States [+] | 7.3% | 0.50 | 2.30 | December 2008 | |
| Euro zone [+] | 8.3% | 0.20 | 0.90 | December 2008 | |
| United Kingdom [+] | 6.4% | 0.20 | 1.20 | December 2008 | |
| Germany [+] | 7.0% | 0 | -1.10 | December 2008 | |
| France [+] | 8.0% | 0.20 | 0.70 | December 2008 | |
| Japan [+] | 4.4% | 0.40 | 0.70 | December 2008 | |
| Spain [+] | 14.8% | 1.00 | 6.00 | December 2008 | |
| Italy [+] | 6.9% | -0.20 | 0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Portugal [+] | 9.8% | 0.50 | 0.60 | December 2008 | |
| Greece [+] | 8.6% | 0.60 | 0.40 | December 2008 | |
| Ireland [+] | 9.0% | 0.50 | 3.70 | December 2008 | |
| Argentina [+] | 7.3% | -0.50 | -0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Austria [+] | 5.0% | 0.20 | 0.50 | December 2008 | |
| Australia [+] | 4.6% | 0.11 | 0.26 | December 2008 | |
| Belgium [+] | 6.9% | 0.20 | -0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Bulgaria [+] | 5.3% | 0.30 | -0.80 | December 2008 | |
| Canada [+] | 7.0% | 0.30 | 0.80 | December 2008 | |
| Chile [+] | 7.5% | -0.02 | 0.26 | December 2008 | |
| Colombia [+] | 10.8% | -0.14 | 0.85 | December 2008 | |
| Cyprus [+] | 3.7% | 0.20 | -0.10 | December 2008 | |
| Czechia [+] | 4.8% | 0.40 | -0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Denmark [+] | 4.2% | -0.40 | 0.90 | December 2008 | |
| Estonia [+] | 9.3% | 1.70 | 5.20 | December 2008 | |
| Finland [+] | 6.7% | 0 | 0.10 | December 2008 | |
| Croatia [+] | 8.3% | 0 | -1.00 | December 2008 | |
| Hungary [+] | 8.4% | 0.20 | 0.40 | December 2008 | |
| Iceland [+] | 5.7% | -0.80 | 2.90 | December 2008 | |
| Lithuania [+] | 9.0% | 0.70 | 4.90 | December 2008 | |
| Luxembourg [+] | 4.5% | 0.10 | 0.50 | December 2008 | |
| Latvia [+] | 11.6% | 1.00 | 6.00 | December 2008 | |
| Malta [+] | 6.1% | -0.20 | 0.30 | December 2008 | |
| Mexico [+] | 4.0% | -0.30 | 0.92 | December 2008 | |
| Netherlands [+] | 4.8% | 0.10 | -0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Norway [+] | 3.5% | 0.40 | 0.90 | December 2008 | |
| Poland [+] | 7.0% | 0.20 | -1.30 | December 2008 | |
| Romania [+] | 5.8% | 0.30 | -0.20 | December 2008 | |
| Sweden [+] | 6.9% | -0.20 | 0.80 | December 2008 | |
| Slovenia [+] | 4.3% | 0 | -0.40 | December 2008 | |
| Slovakia [+] | 9.1% | 0.20 | -1.40 | December 2008 | |
| Türkiye [+] | 12.0% | 0.50 | 2.70 | December 2008 | |
| Uruguay [+] | 7.2% | 0.63 | -0.58 | December 2008 | |
| Venezuela [+] | 6.1% | 0 | -0.10 | December 2008 | |
| South Africa [+] | 21.5% | 0 | December 2008 | ||
| < Unemployment Rate 2007Unemployment Rate 2009 > | |||||
Unemployment Rate: Youth unemployment
| Countries | Unemployment < 25 | Male unemployment < 25 | Female unemployment < 25 | Month | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States [+] | 14.8% | 16.9% | 12.5% | December 2008 | |||
| Euro zone [+] | 18.2% | 18.1% | 18.3% | December 2008 | |||
| United Kingdom [+] | 16.5% | 18.7% | 14.1% | December 2008 | |||
| Germany [+] | 10.7% | 11.6% | 9.7% | December 2008 | |||
| France [+] | 22.6% | 20.9% | 24.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Japan [+] | 7.5% | 8.0% | 6.9% | December 2008 | |||
| Spain [+] | 30.7% | 31.5% | 29.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Italy [+] | 22.7% | 20.3% | 25.3% | December 2008 | |||
| Portugal [+] | 23.3% | 21.6% | 25.1% | December 2008 | |||
| Greece [+] | 23.4% | 18.8% | 29.1% | December 2008 | |||
| Ireland [+] | 18.0% | 23.4% | 12.0% | December 2008 | |||
| Austria [+] | 11.2% | 11.4% | 10.9% | December 2008 | |||
| Australia [+] | 9.7% | 10.5% | 8.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Belgium [+] | 17.8% | 15.9% | 20.1% | December 2008 | |||
| Bulgaria [+] | 11.9% | 13.0% | 10.5% | December 2008 | |||
| Canada [+] | 12.6% | 13.8% | 11.3% | December 2008 | |||
| Cyprus [+] | 9.4% | 9.0% | 9.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Czechia [+] | 11.2% | 10.2% | 12.6% | December 2008 | |||
| Denmark [+] | 9.6% | 10.7% | 8.4% | December 2008 | |||
| Estonia [+] | 22.3% | 24.8% | 19.4% | December 2008 | |||
| Finland [+] | 16.3% | 19.4% | 13.4% | December 2008 | |||
| Croatia [+] | 23.3% | 20.5% | 27.3% | December 2008 | |||
| Hungary [+] | 21.0% | 21.1% | 21.0% | December 2008 | |||
| Iceland [+] | 14.6% | 18.8% | 9.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Lithuania [+] | 20.3% | 22.1% | 17.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Luxembourg [+] | 18.6% | 15.4% | 22.0% | December 2008 | |||
| Latvia [+] | 25.7% | 27.9% | 22.2% | December 2008 | |||
| Malta [+] | 12.0% | 11.7% | 12.5% | December 2008 | |||
| Netherlands [+] | 10.3% | 11.8% | 8.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Norway [+] | 12.0% | 12.9% | 11.2% | December 2008 | |||
| Poland [+] | 17.5% | 15.6% | 19.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Romania [+] | 17.7% | 17.9% | 17.5% | December 2008 | |||
| Sweden [+] | 19.8% | 20.8% | 18.7% | December 2008 | |||
| Slovenia [+] | 10.0% | 9.4% | 10.8% | December 2008 | |||
| Slovakia [+] | 19.8% | 18.8% | 21.4% | December 2008 | |||
| Türkiye [+] | 22.0% | 22.2% | 21.5% | December 2008 | |||
| Uruguay [+] | 20.3% | 14.3% | 28.1% | December 2008 | |||
| South Africa [+] | 44.9% | December 2008 | |||||
| < Unemployment Rate 2007Unemployment Rate 2009 > | |||||||
Unemployment Rate: By sex
| Countries | Male unemployment | Female unemployment | Month | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States [+] | 8.0% | 6.5% | December 2008 | ||
| Euro zone [+] | 7.9% | 8.9% | December 2008 | ||
| United Kingdom [+] | 7.0% | 5.6% | December 2008 | ||
| Germany [+] | 7.0% | 7.0% | December 2008 | ||
| France [+] | 7.6% | 8.4% | December 2008 | ||
| Japan [+] | 4.5% | 4.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Spain [+] | 14.1% | 15.7% | December 2008 | ||
| Italy [+] | 5.9% | 8.3% | December 2008 | ||
| Portugal [+] | 9.5% | 10.1% | December 2008 | ||
| Greece [+] | 6.2% | 12.0% | December 2008 | ||
| Ireland [+] | 10.6% | 7.0% | December 2008 | ||
| Austria [+] | 4.9% | 5.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Australia [+] | 4.6% | 4.5% | December 2008 | ||
| Belgium [+] | 6.1% | 7.9% | December 2008 | ||
| Bulgaria [+] | 5.3% | 5.4% | December 2008 | ||
| Canada [+] | 7.5% | 6.5% | December 2008 | ||
| Chile [+] | 6.8% | 8.7% | December 2008 | ||
| Cyprus [+] | 3.4% | 4.1% | December 2008 | ||
| Czechia [+] | 3.5% | 6.4% | December 2008 | ||
| Denmark [+] | 4.4% | 4.0% | December 2008 | ||
| Estonia [+] | 10.7% | 7.9% | December 2008 | ||
| Finland [+] | 6.6% | 6.8% | December 2008 | ||
| Croatia [+] | 6.7% | 10.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Hungary [+] | 8.5% | 8.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Iceland [+] | 6.6% | 4.5% | December 2008 | ||
| Lithuania [+] | 10.1% | 7.9% | December 2008 | ||
| Luxembourg [+] | 4.7% | 5.9% | December 2008 | ||
| Latvia [+] | 13.7% | 9.3% | December 2008 | ||
| Malta [+] | 5.3% | 7.6% | December 2008 | ||
| Mexico [+] | 3.9% | 4.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Netherlands [+] | 4.0% | 5.7% | December 2008 | ||
| Norway [+] | 3.7% | 3.2% | December 2008 | ||
| Poland [+] | 6.3% | 7.8% | December 2008 | ||
| Romania [+] | 6.8% | 4.5% | December 2008 | ||
| Sweden [+] | 6.9% | 6.9% | December 2008 | ||
| Slovenia [+] | 4.0% | 4.6% | December 2008 | ||
| Slovakia [+] | 8.2% | 10.3% | December 2008 | ||
| Türkiye [+] | 11.6% | 11.6% | December 2008 | ||
| Uruguay [+] | 4.8% | 10.1% | December 2008 | ||
| Venezuela [+] | 5.7% | 6.7% | December 2008 | ||
| South Africa [+] | 18.8% | 24.9% | December 2008 | ||
| < Unemployment Rate 2007Unemployment Rate 2009 > | |||||
Unemployment (or joblessness) occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work. Therefore, the unemployed in a country are those with age, ability and desire to work (labor force) but do not have a job.
The number of unemployed in a country usually was expressed in terms of the labor force, and it is called unemployment rate. The unemployment rate is a percentage and it is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed people by all individuals currently in the labor force.
Unemployment rate = Total Unemployed / Labor force