Unemployment rate unchanged

Despite ongoing anti-epidemic measures, the unemployment rate in the Czech Republic has remained unchanged in February - it stands at 4.3%.

Last month, there were 311,463 job seekers - 2,604 more than in January. The number of vacancies remains higher - employers have been offering 330,735 jobs. The unemployment rate is still among the lowest in the EU - however, compared to last February, it rose by 1.3 percentage points.

The director of the Czech Labor Office Viktor Najmon stated that different segments of the labor market have been affected by the coronavirus crisis asymmetrically. Tourism, gastronomy, services, trade or culture are among those hit the hardest. On the other hand, sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare and social care are facing workforce shortages.

There are also regional differences. On average, there is 0.9 applicant for one vacancy in the Czech Republic. However, in the district of Prague-East, it is 0.1 applicant - while in the Karviná district there are almost twelve candidates for one position.

The unemployment rate increased month-on-month in a total of seven out of fourteen Czech regions, fell in one and stagnated in six. The Pardubice region with 3.2% has the lowest rate, followed by the Hradec Králové region with 3.3%. The worst situation is in the Karlovy Vary (6%), Moravian-Silesian (5.9%) and Ústecký (5.9%) regions.