Persons in Unemployment

Persons in unemployment are defined as all those of working age who were not in employment, carried out activities to seek employment during a specified recent period and were currently available to take up employment given a job opportunity.

1. “Not in employment” is assessed with respect to the short reference period for the measurement of employment.

2. To “seek employment” refers to any activity when carried out, during a specified recent period comprising the last four weeks or one month, for the purpose of finding a job or setting up a business or agricultural undertaking. This includes also part-time, informal, temporary, seasonal or casual employment, within the national territory or abroad. Examples of such activities are:

•  arranging for financial resources, applying for permits, licences;
• (ii) looking for land, premises, machinery, supplies, farming inputs;
• (iii) seeking the assistance of friends, relatives or other types of intermediaries;
• (iv) registering with or contacting public or private employment services;
• (v) applying to employers directly, checking at worksites, farms, factory gates, markets or other assembly places;
• (vi) placing or answering newspaper or online job advertisements;
• (vii) placing or updating résumés on professional or social networking sites online.

3. The point when the enterprise starts to exist should be used to distinguish between search activities aimed at setting up a business and the work activity itself, as evidenced by the enterprise’s registration to operate or by when financial resources become available, the necessary infrastructure or materials are in place or the first client or order is received, depending on the context.
4. “Currently available” serves as a test of readiness to start a job in the present, assessed with respect to a short reference period comprising that used to measure employment:

• depending on national circumstances, the reference period may be extended to include a short subsequent period not exceeding two weeks in total, so as to ensure adequate coverage of unemployment situations among different population groups.

Resolution I. Resolution concerning statistics of work, employment and labour underutilization, the 19 ICLS