Unemployment rate in Latvia reduced by 3 percent in 2011

RIGA - In 2011, the number of unemployed persons reduced by 34,256 or 3 percent, which indicates that Latvia’s labor market is stabilizing, LETA was informed by State Employment Agency’s Director Baiba Pasevica.

The agency informs that at the end of 2011, the number of unemployed persons shrank to 130,295, whilst the registered unemployment – from 14.5 to 11.5 percent. Compared to the respective periods of 2009 and 2010, when the figure exceeded 190,000, it can be concluded that the situation has improved greatly and that indicates stability and positive trends throughout the entire 2010.

Nevertheless, the situation still remains worrisome. A very large number of people are still looking for jobs, emphasizes Pasevica. Even though the unemployment rate continues to reduce, the number of unemployed still exceeds the number of available vacancies significantly. Latvia’s economy is recovering, however, the pace is not fast enough for the creation of many new jobs. During the pre-crisis period, the agency’s database contained information on 21,000 vacancies, whilst at the end of December 2011 – only on 2,512.

The Welfare Ministry predicts that Latvia's labor market will continue to stabilize in the coming years, and the number of jobseekers will gradually decrease. In 2012, the average unemployment level could be around 10.1 percent.