Unemployment Rate in the Czech Republic Rises to 5 Percent in July – Number of Vacancies Also Increases

The unemployment rate in the Czech Republic rose to 5 percent in July. At the same time, the number of registered vacancies also increased.

In July, a total of 35,386 people were removed from the unemployment register in the Czech Republic. This was fewer than in June, but more than in the same month last year. Of these, 23,975 took up new employment.

According to the Czech Labour Office, a regularly recurring trend can be seen among those leaving the register. The proportion of women caring for a child aged up to ten fell to its lowest level of the year in July.

Accordingly, many women postpone their return to work until shortly before the beginning of the new school year or until after the end of the summer holidays. Schools and other educational institutions then resume their regular operations.

Among jobseekers registered at the end of July, women accounted for 54.5 percent. School leavers and young people made up 4.5 percent of the unemployed. The proportion of people with disabilities stood at 12.5 percent.

The Ústí nad Labem Region continued to record the highest unemployment rate, at 7.3 percent at the end of July. It was followed by the Moravian-Silesian Region at 7.0 percent. The lowest figures at the end of the first month of the summer holidays were recorded in Prague at 3.9 percent and the Pardubice Region at 4.0 percent.

An Average of 3.6 Applicants per Vacancy

More than 100,000 vacancies were offered through labour offices. However, the authority stressed that this figure did not reflect the entire Czech labour market. Many employers advertised vacancies independently through online portals.

According to Labour Office data, there were an average of 3.6 jobseekers for every registered vacancy nationwide. The situation was particularly strained in the districts of Karviná, with 19.1 applicants per vacancy, and Sokolov, with 18.3 applicants.