Tampere unemployment rises to 15.7% as Pirkanmaa records 5,127 more jobseekers

Tamperelainen reported that Tampere’s unemployment rate climbed to 15.7 percent in March, and Pirkanmaa had 35,894 unemployed jobseekers — 5,127 more than a year earlier, giving the region a 13.3 percent unemployment rate. According to Yle, Pirkanmaa’s unemployment also saw a short-term change: the number of unemployed jobseekers fell by 963 compared with February. Yle notes that Pirkanmaa’s unemployment rate of 13.3 percent is higher than the national average of 12.5 percent. Within the region, unemployment varied between municipalities, with Urjala recording the highest rate at 18.0 percent and Pälkäne the lowest at 7.6 percent.

Long-term unemployment is increasing. In March, 13,523 people had been unemployed for more than a year, up 2,740 from the previous year. Those unemployed for over two years numbered 6,625 — an increase of 1,658 year-on-year — highlighting growing persistent joblessness in the region.

Yle adds that the number of new vacancies declined in parallel with weaker labour demand. In March, there were 3,701 new job listings, around a quarter fewer than a year earlier. Most openings were in construction and repair, manufacturing, and in service and sales roles.

Yle also reports that nearly 19,500 of the unemployed had upper secondary education. The number of unemployed under 20 rose by 29 percent, and almost 4,800 people under the age of 25 were out of work. Yle reports structural unemployment totalled nearly 21,000 people, or 57.6 percent of all unemployed jobseekers.