Page 24 - GEORptOct21

Georgia’s unemployment rate at 21.9% in Q1
Average monthly salary in Georgia amounts to GEL1,328 says Geostat
Georgia’s unemployment rate hit 21.9% in Q1, up by 3.7pp y/y. And the increase would have been steeper if some 80,000 Georgians had simply given up seeking a job. The population outside the labour force, the active population, exceeded for the first time in recent years half of the working-age population as labour force participation rate dropped to 48.3% of the active population, down from 51.3% last year.
The number of unemployed people in Georgia increased by nearly 35,000 to 317,500 in Q1, accounting for 10.6% of the working age population (or 21.9% of the active population).
While this was not the highest unemployment in recent years (the jobless rate was higher in Q1 of 2018), the low number of jobs is a more significant concern for social impact and economic growth. Compared to the first quarter of 2018 (when the number of people seeking a job was 9% bigger than in Q1 this year), the jobs count in Georgia’s economy dropped by 9.3%, or by 80,000. As compared to the pre-crisis period, the jobless rate should be adjusted to reflect discouraged workers who have given up hope of finding a job, at least for a good while.
According to Georgia’s National Statistics Office (Geostat), in Q2, the average monthly nominal earnings in Georgia increased by 15.5% (GEL 177.9) y/y to total GEL 1,328.
Geostat said the average earnings equalled GEL 1 077 for women and GEL 1 560 for men. As for the annual growth of earnings, the figure amounted to GEL 153.6 for women and GEL 207.6 for men. "In the majority of sectors of economy the average monthly earnings of men were higher compared to women," noted Geostat.
According to the statistics office, the highest earnings were observed in the following fields: financial and insurance activities, GEL 2,354.7 (increased by 15.4% y/y); information and communication, GEL 2,173.0 (increased by 12.4%); construction, GEL 2,006.1 (increased by 23.7%); and professional, scientific and technical activities, GEL 1 919.5 (increased by 7.4%).
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
Q1 2021
Q2 2021
Labour force (Active population), thousand persons
1629.0
1675.6
1653.8
1641.4
1605.2
1572.8
1523.7
1447.2
1559.1
Employed, thousand persons
1255.0
1308.5
1294.5
1286.9
1296.2
1295.9
1241.8
1129.7
1214.6
Unemployed, thousand persons
374.0
367.2
359.2
354.5
309.0
276.9
281.9
317.5
344.6
Unemployment rate %
23.0
21.9
21.7
21.6
19.2
17.6
18.5
21.9
22.1
Source: Geostat
24 GEORGIA Country Report October 2021 www.intellinews.com