Labour market
The working-age population is broadly divided into three: employees, i.e. employed persons; unemployed persons and economically inactive persons. The employed and the unemployed together form the economically active population, i.e. the labour force. Active job search is any activity to find a job or start a business. The inactive population includes those who do not want to or cannot work, such as housewives, non-working students, people with disabilities, etc.
Labour market statistics provide an overview of the labour market situation in Estonia, for example:
- the employment rate;
- the number of salaried employees and their occupations;
- how many people work part-time;
- how many people are unemployed in Estonia;
- the employment rate of the immigrant population;
- how many working-age people are economically inactive;
- educational attainment of the working-age population by economic activity and county.
Labour market statistics are required for planning municipal and state budgets, as well as for preparing national action plans.
Number of unemployed persons down by 1,500 in third quarter
According to Statistics Estonia, in the third quarter of 2024, the unemployment rate was 7.4%, the employment rate was 69.1% and the labour force participation rate was 74.6%. There were 1,500 fewer unemployed people than in the previous quarter.