People claiming unemployment benefits are up
The effects of the Coronavirus are becoming visible in Groningen’s employment figures, reports the GIC. The number of unfilled vacancies has decreased by a third, while the number of people claiming unemployment benefits has increased by 20.5% year-on-year, according to UWV figures.
However, it is not too bad with Groningen in relative terms, because many people are employed in the public, rather than private sector, for example at the University of Groningen, Hanze University or UMCG.
The outbreak of the Coronavirus and the intelligent lockdown led to a decline in employment, as a result of which more people lost their jobs, and companies posted fewer vacancies, the UWV reports. Nevertheless, there is still a demand for personnel, especially in technology, ICT and care.
The number of people claiming unemployment benefits had already increased in March and April, with May again showing a similar picture, with a further 1.2% rise in benefit claims. New claimants tend to have come from the catering/hospitality industry, cleaning and trade. According to the UWV, it is mainly young people who are losing their jobs. They work a lot in the most affected sectors and often work on a temporary basis.
Until the Coronavirus lockdown in mid-March – over 4,200 vacancies were open in the province of Groningen. At the beginning of May, there were still 3,000. The number of unfilled vacancies in the province of Groningen fell by 29 percent during the corona crisis.
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