Unemployment rate drops to 5.5 pct in May

 

The unemployment rate for men was 0.3 percentage points higher than in women.

 

The number of persons unemployed (aged 15-74) estimated for the month of May of 2021 was of 449,000 persons, down compared to the previous month (474,000 persons).

 

For adult persons (aged 25-74), the unemployment rate was estimated at 4.4 pct for the month of May 2021 (4.6 pct in the case of men and 4.2 pct in the case of women).

 

The number of unemployed persons aged 25-74 represents 75.6 pct of the total number of unemployed for the month of May 2021.

 

According to the INS, starting with 2021, the methodology of the Household Labor Force Survey was revised to meet the requirements of the new European regulations. These amendments generate a noticeable impact on estimates - especially on the number of the employed population (and implicitly on the number of the active population - which is the denominator of the "unemployment rate" indicator).

 

Starting with 2021, persons that produce agricultural goods mainly or exclusively for self-consumption are no longer part of employed population, this indicator decreasing accordingly. For this reason, the data published in the months of January - May 2021 is not comparable with data published for the previous periods.