Unemployment hits 22%

The current social plague of unemployment is taking on more and more nightmarish proportions in our country, even without considering the ever-increasing number of professionals who are left without work.

Nearly 1.1 million of our fellow citizens are unemployed, about 1,000 are losing their jobs every day, while at the age of 24, 1 in 2 young men and 1 in 4 women are unemployed.

The unemployment rate rose to 21.9% in March 2012, against 15.7% in March 2011 and 21.4% in February 2012. The number of the employed in March 2012 was estimated at 3,843,905 people. The unemployed amounted to 1,075,081, while the economically active population stood at 3,372,144.

The number of employed people decreased by 342,134 compared to March 2011 (-8.2%) and by 24,996 compared to February 2012 (-0.6%).

The unemployed increased by 294,706 compared to March 2011 (+37.8%) and by 21,625 compared to February 2012 (+2.1%). The economically inactive population rose to 38,751 compared to March 2011 (+1.2%) and 5,350 compared to February 2012 (+0.2%).