One in every five people is unemployed in Turkey, according to official figures

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The number of the unemployed in Turkey dropped by 70,000 in a month to 3,79 million in September, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).

The unemployment rate was 11.5 percent with a 0.3-point decrease, TurkStat announced today (November 10).

The broad unemployment rate, or "idle labor force," however, rose by 0.2 points to 21.9 percent in September. The TurkStat defines the "idle labor force" as the sum of the underemployed, the potential labor force and the unemployed.

The number of the employed increased by 426,000 in a month and reached 29,25 million. The employment rate increased by 0.6 points to 45.8.

Youth unemployment

The unemployment rate in the 15-24 age group decreased by 0.9 to 21.5 percent. The employment rate n the same age group increased by 0.3 percent t0 32.7 percent.

The labor force participation rate among the youth dropped by 0.1 points to 41.7 percent.

Sectors

According to TurkStat, 54.9 percent of of the employment was in the service sector, which was followed by industry (21.9 percent), agriculture (17 percent), and construction (6.2 percent).

The rate of those who work informally was 30.5 percent in September, down by 2 points from the previous month. (HA/VK)