Over half a million people unemployed
AMSTERDAM – Today, over half a million Dutch people are out of work, the highest number since 1996.
These figures were presented by the CBS (Central Bureau for Statistics), this amounts to 6.5 per cent of the Dutch labour force. For over a year now, each month the number of unemployed people is rising. This is due to the fact that people lose their jobs and people already out of work do not find new jobs quite as easily. In 2004 and 2005, unemployment figures were high but now for the first time, those figures have risen above the half a million mark. Compared to 2004/2005, comparatively speaking, more men and people over 45 are jobless. There are less women and people younger than 45 are out of work.
Benefits
The number of people on unemployment benefits has risen with 7,000 up to 298,000. The biggest rise in unemployment benefits in the past year was among young people. Compared to last year, 54 per cent more young people are on benefits. Requests for benefits were mostly made by people who had worked in construction, health care and the temping sector. Regionally, the highest rise was seen in the provinces of Overijssel and Zeeland.
According to Minister Henk Kamp for Social Affairs, only a strong and healthy economy can create a rise in employment. In order to achieve this it is essential that we carry on financially organizing matters, says Minister Kamp. “Europe is in stormy weather economically speaking and we have not seen the worst of it yet”, says the VVD Minister. “This is certainly the case for the Netherlands even though our unemployment figures are second lowest in Europe”. The CBS stated earlier this week that in the second quarter of 2012, there were 55,000 fewer jobs than the previous year, a drop of 0.7 per cent. Nearly all labour sectors are faced with a lower number of jobs. Since 2004 the number of vacancies has not been as low as in the end of June of this year. The number of job openings has been on the decrease for about a year now. In the second quarter of this year there were 109,000 vacancies, 9000 less than in the first quarter.
All-time low
In a reaction, the SP and the PvdA say that they blame the unemployment numbers to the policies of the Rutte cabinet. Leader of the PvdA Diederik Samsom spoke on Twitter of “a depressing all-time low”. “Rutte’s recipe of unilateral economizing is an absolute failure, we must shift the helm” says Diederik Samsom. MP for the SP Paul Ulenbelt draws the same conclusion. “The economy could do with a bit less of the VVD”. Party leader Emile Roemer speaks of “a depressing record”. According to him the current cabinet has damaged the economy. GroenLinks and FNV Jong set up a campaign against unemployment last Thursday. In a statement to NU.nl they said that there should also be more attention for job creation from the European Union.
Accessory
According to trade union federation FNV the high unemployment figures are not only due to low economic growth caused by the euro crisis but also because of the cabinet’s policies. “The cabinet breaks down too much and does not invest enough in recovering trust and spending.” The FNV wants the new cabinet to make the battle against unemployment “number one priority by investing in people, jobs and fair sharing”. GroenLinks and FNV Jong plead for European intervention regarding unemployment among youths. In reaction to the CBS figures, Tofik Dibi, Member of Parliament for GroenLinks, asks for a European summit.
Source: NU.nl/Heleen Haverkort/ANP