The International Labour Organisation (ILO) considers people of working age to be in one (and one only) of three situations in the labour market: employed, unemployed, or inactive. The employed and unemployed together are known as the labour force.
Read moreA closely watched indicator is the unemployment rate (the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labour force). The unemployment rate tracks what economists call “labour slack” – the match between the jobs on offer in an economy and the number of people seeking to work – and is a key indicator of a society’s economic and social well-being.
Read moreLabour force data are typically analysed by gender, age group (youth, prime age, older). They are also frequently broken down in many other ways for specific policy purposes: by economic sector, by occupation, by level of education, full- and part-time workers, the short- and long-term unemployed.
Read moreOECD unemployment rate unchanged at 4.8% in September 2023
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14 November 2023 - The OECD unemployment rate was stable at 4.8% in September 2023, having remained below 5.0% since July 2022 (Figure 1 and Table 1). The unemployment rate rose in 16 OECD countries in September 2023, was unchanged in 11, and declined in 6 (Figure 2 and Table 1). The number of unemployed persons in the OECD increased to 33.3 million in September, its highest level in 2023, mainly driven by an increase in the number of unemployed men.
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Behind the numbers
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Further statistics on the labour market |
Related labour topics |