The unemployment rate in the last Iranian year (ended March 19, 2016) stood at 11%, the Statistical Center of Iran announced.
The figure registers a 0.4% rise compared with the preceding year, meaning 2.72 million Iranians were unemployed last year.
The data also show 9.3% of men and 19.4% of women of ages 10 and above were jobless last year. The unemployment rate was at 12.2% for urban areas and 8.1% for rural areas. In other words, joblessness was higher among women compared to men, and those living in urban areas than rural people.
SCI put last year’s labor force participation rate, i.e. the proportion of the population of ages 10 years and above that is economically active, at 38.2%. The figure shows a 1% rise compared to that of the previous year. Men’s and women’s participation rates were 63.2% and 13.3% respectively.
The youth unemployment rate, i.e. the proportion of the population between the ages of 15 and 29, stood at 23.3% last year, registering a 1.4% growth compared with the year ending March 20, 2015.
The services sector employed 49.4% of the population, whereas industrial and agricultural sectors provided 32.5% and 18% of the population with jobs respectively.
The services sector consists of wholesale and retail trade; restaurants and hotels; transport, storage and communications; financing, insurance, real estate and business services; and community, social, education, health and personal services.
East Azarbaijan recorded the lowest unemployment rate among other provinces last year (7.3%). Kohgilouyeh-Boyerahmad Province filed the highest rate of 17.7%.
Employment is defined as persons of working age engaged in any activity to produce goods or provide services for pay or profit, whether at work during the reference period or not at work due to a temporary absence from a job, or to working-time arrangement.
Labor force participation rate refers to the number of people who are either employed or actively looking for work.
