Brussels, 07/01/2013 (Agence Europe) - Few occupations were free from exposure to the general decline in recruitment during the first quarter of 2012. Unemployment continued to grow but was not distributed evenly. According to the latest editions of the study by the European Observatory on job vacancies and the European Job Mobility Bulletin, published late December, the so-called “elementary” or “low skilled” areas of employment have been the worst hit by the economic recession within the EU. Older people aged between 55 and 64 years of age have experienced the greatest difficulty in finding employment.
During the first quarter of 2012, compared to the first quarter of 2011, job vacancies for craftsmen and traders fell by 12%, those for operators and assembly workers by 7%, and those for low-skilled jobs by 13%. On the other hand, highly qualified workers in the business, finance and health sectors were still highly sought after, with a rise of 5% in vacancies. This specific category of workers nonetheless remains in the minority and, despite their current attraction, does not counter the general rise in unemployment. An annual decline of -7% was seen in the number of vacancies in the 27 Public Employment Services (PES). This general trend nonetheless conceals considerable discrepancies, as can be seen, for example, in Slovakia (where the fall in vacancies is 26%) and Hungary (where vacancies have risen by 36%).
Among those who found employment between the first quarters of 2011 and 2012, only 6% fell into the category of older workers. Also, this largely concerns low and medium skilled occupations, such as manual jobs in construction for men and in the services sector (house cleaning, child minding, care and assistance) for women. (JK/transl.jl)