In March, the national unemployment rate declined for the first time in months. Even though the pandemic has left its marks on the job market, it did not prevent the Grand Duchy from continuing its upward trend in terms of job creation. More than 7,200 openings were created in the last year, out of which over 4,000 were filled by cross-border employees.
Tom Oswald, coordinator at the Ministry of Labour, Employment and the Social and Solidarity Economy, provided further insight into the evolution of the job market in the context of a respective enquiry by MPs Georges Engel and Mars Di Bartolomeo (both LSAP). Throughout the crisis, Luxembourg has remained a provider of work. Between March 2020 and February 2021, employment increased by 1.4% in comparison to the period preceding the pandemic.
Unsurprisingly, the health sector places significantly above the average with its demand rate. Similarly, social work, the construction industry, as well as science and technology have shown great resilience. Despite not having hired as many people during the crisis as before, these sectors have kept on growing: 3.8% in the health sector, 3.6% in construction, and 5% for specialised activities in science and technology.
Two sectors even managed to create more jobs during the pandemic than before: agriculture with a plus of 3.4% compared to 2.5%, and public administration with a plus of 6.6% compared to 4%.
The transportation sector, as well as insurance and finance, have all continued to grow, but at significantly lower rates than before the pandemic, 0.5% versus 3.6% and 0.1% versus 2.4%, Oswald further conveyed.
At the same time, some sectors have fallen victim to the repercussions of the pandemic and began registering negative hiring trends.
Retail (-1.0% versus 4.3%), hospitality (-2% versus 2.8%), manufacturing (-1.2% versus 0.03%), as well as IT and communication (-1.5% versus 2.9%) have all suffered considerably since the beginning of the pandemic.
Temporary contract workers have also struggled to weather the crisis, with 4,999 employed on average in 2020, compared to 6,350 on average in 2019 - a 21% reduction over one year.
The labour market's difficulties have also had an effect on social security contributions, reducing revenue by 139 million euros.
