Labour: -63 thousand employed in September, employment rate drops to 62.1%

After three months of growth, September brought the first real slowdown for the labour market. Compared to the previous month, the number of employed people dropped by 63,000, with the employment rate thus dropping to 62.1%. The photograph is taken by Istat. Employment is decreasing (-0.3%, equal to -63 thousand units) among men and women, among employees (especially permanent ones), among 15-24 year-olds and 35-49 year-olds; it is substantially stable for the self-employed and for those aged 50 and over, while it is increasing among 25-34 year-olds.

Looking at contract types, permanent employment, i.e. permanent contracts, fell in September: -55,000. And this is a sign of caution since stable contracts had more or less always risen. Fixed-term contracts fell by 6,000, and the self-employed remained more or less unchanged. Over the year the picture remains positive. Compared to September 2023, the number of employed persons is instead 301 thousand more, a synthesis of the increase in permanent employees (+331 thousand) and the self-employed (+81 thousand) and the decrease in fixed-term employees (-110 thousand).

Again reading the Istat data, in September the number of job seekers decreased (-0.9%, or -14,000) among men and those aged 35 years or older, while it increased among women and those under 35. The unemployment rate is stable at 6.1%, the youth unemployment rate rises to 18.3% (+0.3 points).

The number of inactive persons increased (+0.4%, or +56 thousand) for men, women and all age groups, decreasing only among 25-34 year olds. The inactivity rate rises to 33.7% (+0.2 points). Compared to September 2023, the number of people looking for work decreased (-21.4%, equal to -423 thousand units) and the number of inactive people between 15 and 64 years of age increased (+2.8%, equal to +337 thousand). A new bellwether: in one year the number of inactive persons grows more than the number of employed persons..