How many unemployed people are in Belarus. Official unemployment in Belarus reaches historic low

According to Belstat, by the end of last year, there were 35.3 thousand officially registered unemployed. This figure is 1.4% lower than in November of the same year, and 18.5% lower than a year earlier. At the end of 2016, the registered unemployment in the country amounted to 0.8% of the number of economically active citizens. At the end of 2015, it was 1%.

Last year 239.2 thousand people were registered, who applied for assistance in finding a job. Of these, 70.1% or 167.6 thousand people were recognized as unemployed. Assistance in employment was provided to 159.8 thousand people, of which 109 thousand were unemployed. They accounted for 68.2% of all employed.

In 2016 there were 98 officially registered unemployed per 100 existing vacancies, at the end previous year their number was 151. About two thirds of the unemployed are men; women accounted for 34% of the total number of such citizens. The average unemployed person turned out to be a 31.5-year-old man with a vocational or general secondary education, who was dismissed by agreement of the parties.

In Belarus, the number of unemployed, actively looking for it and ready to start it is 5.2% economically active population... This is evidenced by the data published in the annual bulletin “ Labor resources and employment of the population in the Republic of Belarus ”.

The average data for 2016 given in the bulletin indicate that last year the number of registered unemployed was 45.2 thousand, and unregistered - 230.2 thousand. Unregistered are "Persons who do not have a job, are actively looking for it and ready to start it".

While the number of economically active population averaged 4.4 million people per year, the level of unregistered (hidden) unemployment in relation to the total economically active population was 5.2%.

In addition to persons who, according to the classification The International Organization labor, are considered unemployed, the bulletin also provides data on the number of able-bodied people who are not looking for work.

According to the annual data of the National Statistical Committee, in the country in 2016, there were 43.7 thousand “persons who believe that there is no way to find a job”, and 28 thousand “who do not have the need or desire to work”. Thus, taking into account the unregistered unemployed, the number of persons not employed in the labor market amounted to 301.9 thousand.

At the meeting on August 3 Alexander Lukashenko expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that 300 thousand people are not employed in the economy.

“We have at least half a million unemployed people. Of these, we can release 200 thousand: large children, sick, disabled people, people who may want to work, but they cannot because of life circumstances. But where is 300 thousand? " - Lukashenka stressed and instructed to take measures to make them work.

Meanwhile, Belarusian economists believe that people who, according to domestic statistics, are unemployed, are actually employed, including abroad.

“The times when all our compatriots worked at Belarusian factories are in the past. Today, many people become freelancers, find employment not only in Belarus, but also abroad, since the labor market has become global and it is impossible to resist this trend, ”the director of the IPM Research Center said in a comment to BelaPAN Alexander Chubrik.

According to official Russian data (Ministry of Internal Affairs and the central accounting database foreign citizens), the number of Belarusian citizens staying in Russia for last years increased. So, if in June 2014 the number of Belarusians in Russia was estimated at 415.6 thousand people, then in June 2016 - 711.1 thousand, and in June 2017 - 676.1 thousand people. Russian demographers believe that many Belarusians in Russia are labor migrants.

“Therefore, it seems to me that many of those who are considered parasites in Belarus are actually working citizens. According to Belarusian statistics, they are referred to as “persons who do not have a job, are actively looking for it and are ready to start it,” but in reality, the data of the Russian migration service give reason to believe that they are already working abroad, ”the deputy chairman of the Belarusian scientific and industrial association George Grits.

The richest region of Belarus - Soligorsk - was in the top 10 most unemployed. At the beginning of February, there were 581 official unemployed. the site looked in which districts the most of the unemployed, and in which - the least.

The picture is for illustrative purposes only. Photo: Evgeny Erchak, TUT.BY

Which area was the most unemployed

Still among the leaders in terms of unemployment Molodechno district- 528 unemployed at the beginning of February.

Interestingly, among the unemployed areas there was Soligorsk, where they cannot find a job, according to official statistics, 581 people. In January, the number of unemployed increased by + 10.7%. Let us remind you that here they receive on average even more than the citizens of Minsk.

For example, in January, residents of the Soligorsk region earned an average of 1,423.5 rubles, and Minsk residents - almost 1,189 rubles.

Let us recall that Postavy, Molodechno, Malorita, Orsha and Lida districts are among those in which, according to the authorities, it is most difficult to find a job. The list of territories with a tense situation on the labor market included two regional cities - Vitebsk and Brest, as well as such large industrial cities as Bobruisk, Baranovichi, Novopolotsk.

Where are the least unemployed

Minsk region in January he returned the title of the most "hard worker" - the level of registered unemployment at the beginning of February was 0.1%. The second line of the top remained for Berestovitsky, and the third - for Starodorozhsky district.

The data in the text on the unemployment rate by district is given according to the information of the committees on labor, employment and social protection of the regional executive committees.

National statistical committee Belarus (Belstat) reports that the actual unemployment rate in the country at the end of 2016 amounted to 5.8% of the economically active population, or about 200 thousand people. This figure differs significantly from the one published by the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, according to which, in January of this year, unemployment was only 0.9%. DW found out what caused the discrepancies and what was behind them.

Different methods of counting the unemployed

According to the Ministry of Labor, the number of officially registered unemployed in Belarus at the end of January 2017 was 39.9 thousand people. At the same time, compared to December 2016, this indicator increased immediately by 12.9%. But why Belstat gives more than 200 thousand unemployed, and the Ministry of Labor only about 40 thousand?

According to experts, not all Belarusians who do not work for various reasons are eager to register as unemployed. The reason is the meager unemployment benefit, which now amounts to 24 Belarusian rubles (12 euros) a month. And this is a little more than 13% of living wage... In addition, in order to receive this amount, the unemployed must also participate in public works, for example, sweeping the streets.

According to the former Minister of Labor of Belarus Alexander Sosnov, experts have previously argued that real unemployment in the country is much higher than the authorities report. “If we count according to the methodology of the International Labor Organization (ILO), we will get one figure.

It's all about possible loans?

Sosnov does not exclude that now Belstat has begun counting the number of unemployed according to the ILO methodology, and the IMF could have exerted pressure on the Belarusian authorities in this matter. The World Bank and European bank reconstruction and development, from which the country's leadership wants to receive loans.

The data of the Ministry of Labor were based only on the number of those who were registered at the labor exchange. And not everyone who (in accordance with the ILO methodology) does not have a job, but would like to work, but for various reasons cannot find a job.

In turn, the leader of the trade union of workers of the radio-electronic industry (REP) Gennady Fedynich believes that even the current data of Belstat are underestimated: "They give 5.8%, in fact there are three times more unemployed in Belarus."

Are the "parasites" to blame?

Meanwhile, some of the people who have lost their jobs sometimes turn to the labor exchange in order to avoid the status of a parasite and not pay the tax for "social dependence" established by the presidential decree, which is 20 basic units (460 rubles or more than 230 euros). Gennady Fedynich emphasizes that going to the labor exchange is not at all a guarantee of a person getting a job.

According to him, the registered unemployed are given a list of enterprises, people come there, but they are denied employment, since at the suggestion of President Lukashenko, the country began "optimization" of personnel. That is, Fedynich continues, these enterprises do not know what to do with their employees, who need to actually be laid off.

Context

Today the most difficult situation, says the trade union leader, has developed in small towns and regional centers - in Borisov, Slutsk, Kalinkovichi, Beshenkovichi and others. In addition, the labor exchange does not retrain the unemployed. Under such circumstances, it is simply necessary to abolish Decree No. 3, the head of the REP trade union is sure. Meanwhile, Alexander Sosnov believes that the authorities are unlikely to take such a step, at least in the near future.

Who has the hardest time finding a job?

According to Sosnov, among those who find it most difficult to find a job in Belarus today are university graduates: never taught. " The ex-minister added that people of pre-retirement age also experience big problems with finding a job.

In general, he emphasizes, Belarus lacks new jobs that would provide an opportunity for GDP growth, since "for more than 20 years the country has been eating up the Soviet legacy, almost without creating anything new." So far, the situation cannot improve in any way, and no decree # 3 will save it, concluded Sosnov.

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• Demography and geography

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Social support through fines?

From the 2017 budget, more than $ 900 million (11% of the expenditure side) will be allocated for social support of the population - assistance to families with children, assistance in providing housing, payment of pensions and support for young people. This is more than last year. Almost the same amount - 13.7% of the total volume - is planned to be allocated to the revenue side of the budget through fines.



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Salary of $ 500: "Steal, Find, Dig!"

The average salary reached $ 400 by 2017, but its purchasing power fell 4.5% over the year. By February, Alexander Lukashenko promised the residents of the country a salary of $ 500, threatening to dismiss the ministers for not following his instructions. So much Belarusians already received in 2014 and in 2010 before the presidential elections, but economic crisis then "ate" a third of the dollar equivalent.



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Who earns how much

The tallest average salary for Belarusians employed in the field of IT technologies: up to $ 1,750. Workers air transport, financiers and parliament members - up to $ 1.3 thousand. Health and education workers receive between $ 270 and $ 320. The least paid are rural workers (about $ 250) and library workers ($ 220).



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Poverty is not a vice?

Only 13% of the population of Belarus has an average monthly per capita income of $ 300 or more. 6% of residents have incomes below the subsistence level, that is, less than $ 87. More than 4% of households are low-income.



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New jobs and unemployment

In 2016, 100 thousand more people were laid off in Belarus than were hired. The labor exchange registered 45 thousand unemployed - 1% of the economically active population. The unemployment benefit is $ 13 equivalent. The authorities promise to create 50,000 jobs, but independent economists consider this task impossible without reforms and improved business conditions.



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How to survive for pensioners

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Growth in the cost of housing and communal services

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Among the leaders in price growth

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Category status:

From 2017, Belarus will publish data on the real level of unemployment based on sample surveys of households. The current methodology does not reflect the processes in the labor market and underestimates the real rates of unemployment. The publication of data will contribute to a more accurate assessment of the required amount of funds to strengthen the protection of the labor resources released as a result of economic reforms.

Starting from January 1, 2017, Belarus will regularly publish data on the unemployment rate based on sample household surveys conducted on a quarterly basis. These data will be published together with the official unemployment rate, the calculation of which will not undergo significant changes. As a result, the country will have two unemployment indicators: the official one, calculated on the basis of the number of unemployed registered with the country's employment services, and the real one, which will reflect all citizens who do not have official work, including those who are not registered at the labor exchange and are not recorded as unemployed at the moment.

The lack of the current methodology for calculating the unemployment rate is recognized in official level through the adoption of a decree on social dependency. By adopting this document, the authorities indicated a figure of at least 400 thousand people who are not officially employed in the economy of Belarus. The official number of unemployed at the end of July was 44.9 thousand people, or 1% of the economically active population of the country. For only 6 months of 2016 in different areas the economy of Belarus on a net basis, more than 81 thousand people were laid off, while the number of unemployed during this period practically did not change.

Belstat has previously collected information on the real level of unemployment, but this information has not been published. The reason for the lack of publications is the significant gap between the official and real unemployment rate. The population census showed that about 6-7% of the economically active population of the country does not work anywhere. The publication of this data could spoil the overall picture of the achievements of social economic model country. The change in the approach to publishing the real unemployment rate is associated with possible cooperation with international financial institutions, which propose reforming the country's economic model, including by reducing the excess number of employees in enterprises and strengthening social protection of the unemployed. In this regard, the state loses its motivation to further conceal information, a more accurate accounting of the real level of unemployment is necessary to calculate the amount of funds that will need to be allocated to strengthen social protection of the unemployed and their retraining, and the amount of funding will serve as the basis for a subsequent increase in the volume of credit resources from outside. international lenders.

Thus, the level of official unemployment ceased to reflect real trends in the labor market. With the introduction of a new indicator, the unemployment rate may reach 5-7% of the economically active population of the country, and the amount of funds allocated for social protection, the unemployed can be multiplied, including through foreign loans.