Unemployment 3.5 percent in May

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© CBS
In May 2023, 353 thousand people aged 15 to 74 years were unemployed. This is 3.5 percent of the labour force. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) measures the trend in the number of unemployed as an average change over the past three months. From March through May, unemployment declined slightly by an average of one thousand per month. In the same period, the employed labour force grew by an average of 9 thousand per month to 9.7 million. At the end of May, the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) recorded 151 thousand unemployment (WW) benefits.

In May, 3.6 million people aged 15 to 74 did not have paid work for a variety of reasons. Aside from the unemployed, 3.2 million people were not looking and/or immediately available for work; they are not counted towards the labour force. These are mainly retirees and people unable to work due to illness or disability. From March through May, the number of people outside the labour force declined by an average of 6 thousand per month.


Unemployment and WW unemployment benefits
YearMonthUnemployment (15 to 74 yrs, seasonally adjusted) (x 1,000)WW unemployment benefits (15 yrs up to state pension age) (x 1,000)
2015January760458
2015February747455
2015March745443
2015April743427
2015May732416
2015June725410
2015July708420
2015August708420
2015September712417
2015October722421
2015November703427
2015December695446
2016January680465
2016February688469
2016March680470
2016April679461
2016May668448
2016June656438
2016July648432
2016August628427
2016September617424
2016October609420
2016November607410
2016December590412
2017January588419
2017February582416
2017March571415
2017April563401
2017May564386
2017June555372
2017July544364
2017August534362
2017September529351
2017October511343
2017November504337
2017December503330
2018January487335
2018February474330
2018March465327
2018April463314
2018May460301
2018June463288
2018July458279
2018August463278
2018September451274
2018October444269
2018November433267
2018December437263
2019January437279
2019February419274
2019March416268
2019April409257
2019May411251
2019June423243
2019July424234
2019August432237
2019September432233
2019October432233
2019November434228
2019December409223
2020January390241
2020February383240
2020March388250
2020April427292
2020May439301
2020June513301
2020July532301
2020August533292
2020September519278
2020October509278
2020November485276
2020December476286
2021January448289
2021February450286
2021March439282
2021April427266
2021May419250
2021June405238
2021July393224
2021August406213
2021September399208
2021October382199
2021November359189
2021December369192
2022January354193
2022February336188
2022March327184
2022April316175
2022May323165
2022June339161
2022July353157
2022August378152
2022September382152
2022October365150
2022November364145
2022December352149
2023January360154
2023February356154
2023March357158
2023April343156
2023May353151

UWV: fewer WW benefits than last month and year on year

At the end of May 2023, the UWV provided 151 thousand WW benefits. This is 5.4 thousand fewer than in the preceding month (-3.5 percent). In May, 20.3 thousand WW benefits were terminated and 14.9 thousand new benefits were granted. Relative to May 2022, there was a decrease in the number of current unemployment benefits of 8.4 percent. Among the over-45s in particular, there were fewer WW benefit recipients than one year previously.

Slight drop in unemployment over past three months

In May, there were 3 thousand fewer unemployed than three months previously (i.e. a modest decrease by one thousand per month on average). This decline is the result of underlying flows between the employed, unemployed and non-labour force. This is visualised in the diagram below. The chart below the diagram shows how these different flows have developed over the past few months.

The graphics show there are two flows that can reduce unemployment. The first flow is when unemployed people find a job; the second flow is when unemployed people stop seeking work and withdraw from the labour market.
There are also two opposite flows, which can increase unemployment. These occur when employed people lose their jobs, and when people who did not enter the labour market previously and have started seeking work. If they do not find work immediately, they become part of the unemployed labour force.

Unemployment fell in May (relative to three months previously) because the number of people in work who became unemployed was smaller than the number of unemployed who found a job. The balance stood at -32 thousand in May, which was slightly less than in the previous month.
Unemployment increased due to the inflow of unemployed from outside the labour force. This increase amounted to 28 thousand on balance, which is up on the number in April.

Every month, CBS publishes figures on the labour force in accordance with guidelines of the International Labour Organization (ILO). The corresponding indicators, i.e. the employed and unemployed labour force, are used around the world to describe cyclical developments on the labour market. Monthly figures are essential in this respect. In addition, UWV issues its own monthly figures on unemployment benefits. Figures released by UWV do not correspond one-to-one with the labour force indicators.