According to the Icelandic Labour Force Survey the number of persons in the labour force in January 2017 was 193,100. Of those in the labour force 185,300 persons were employed and 7,900 persons were unemployed. The activity rate was 80.3%, the employment rate was 77.1% and the unemployment rate was 4.1%. Comparison between January 2016 and 2017 shows decrease in activity by 1.2 percentage points of the total population. Number of employed increased by 1,400 persons but the employment rate decreased up by 2.1 point. Number of unemployed increased by 2,600 persons and the unemployment rate was 1.3 points higher.
Figure 1. Labour force January 2017
Figures may not add up because of rounding.
Seasonally adjusted unemployment was 3.6% in January
The changes in the Icelandic labour market display a certain pattern as regards seasonality, as can be seen in the figures below. The seasonal adjustment estimates that in January 2017 the number of people in the labour force was 199,600, corresponding to 82.7% activity rate which is 1.3 percentage points lower than in December 2016. The number of unemployed persons, in January 2017, is estimated around 7,300 and has increased by 1,400 since December. The unemployment rate was 3.6% in January compared to 3% in December. According to the seasonal adjustment the employment rate was 79.7% in January. The trend for seasonally adjusted data in the last six months shows that the unemployment rate has stayed the same, but in the last 12 months it has decreased by 0.2 points. The employment rate has decreased by 0.3 points in the last six months but increased by 0.7 points in the last 12 months.
Implementation
January 2017 is divided into four weeks, from 2nd to 29th of January 2017. The total sample size was 1,203 persons, 16–74 years, randomly chosen from the Population Register. When those who had passed away and those who were living abroad had been deducted from the sample the net sample was 1,166 persons. In total the number of usable answers was 856 which correspond to 73.4% response rate. All figures have been weighted by sex and age groups. The confidence limit of the results on activity rate is ±2.6 points, employment rate is ±2.8 points and unemployment rate is ±1.5 point. Figures may not add up because of rounding. All numbers for the first two months in every quarter of the year are preliminary until the end of the quarter.
| Table 1. Labour market in January - Original | ||||||
| CI | CI | CI | ||||
| 2015 | (±95%) | 2016 | (±95%) | 2017 | (±95%) | |
| Total 16-74 years | ||||||
| Activity rate | 80.1 | 2.2 | 81.5 | 2.4 | 80.3 | 2.6 |
| Employment rate | 76.7 | 2.3 | 79.2 | 2.6 | 77.1 | 2.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.3 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 4.1 | 1.5 |
| Hours of work | 38.0 | 1.2 | 39.2 | 1.3 | 39.2 | 1.2 |
| Labour force | 184,800 | 5,100 | 189,300 | 5,700 | 193,100 | 6,300 |
| Employed | 176,800 | 5,400 | 183,900 | 6,000 | 185,300 | 6,700 |
| Unemployed | 8,000 | 2,400 | 5,300 | 2,400 | 7,900 | 3,000 |
| Inactive | 45,800 | 5,100 | 42,900 | 5,700 | 47,200 | 6,300 |
| Est. population | 230,600 | • | 232,100 | • | 240,400 | • |
| Table 2. Labour market last 6 months - Seasonal adjustment | ||||||
| Aug-16 | Sep-16 | Oct-16 | Nov-16 | Dec-16 | Jan-17 | |
| Total 16-74 years | ||||||
| Activity rate | 84.0 | 84.1 | 83.3 | 84.5 | 84.0 | 82.7 |
| Employment rate | 81.4 | 81.3 | 80.9 | 82.0 | 81.5 | 79.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.1 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.6 |
| Hours of work | 39.8 | 40.5 | 40.1 | 40.1 | 40.2 | 40.5 |
| Labour force | 197,200 | 198,500 | 197,800 | 200,600 | 199,300 | 199,600 |
| Employed | 191,100 | 192,000 | 192,100 | 194,500 | 193,400 | 192,300 |
| Unemployed | 6,100 | 6,500 | 5,700 | 6,100 | 5,900 | 7,300 |
| Inactive | 37,600 | 37,600 | 39,700 | 36,700 | 37,900 | 41,600 |
| Est. population | 234,800 | 236,100 | 237,500 | 237,300 | 237,200 | 241,200 |
| Table 3. Labour market last 6 months - Seasonal adjustment trend | ||||||
| Aug-16 | Sep-16 | Oct-16 | Nov-16 | Dec-16 | Jan-17 | |
| Total 16-74 years | ||||||
| Activity rate | 83.7 | 83.8 | 83.8 | 83.7 | 83.5 | 83.4 |
| Employment rate | 81.2 | 81.2 | 81.2 | 81.2 | 81.0 | 80.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Hours of work | 40.1 | 40.1 | 40.2 | 40.2 | 40.2 | 40.2 |
| Labour force | 197,200 | 198,000 | 198,600 | 199,000 | 199,000 | 198,800 |
| Employed | 191,300 | 192,000 | 192,600 | 193,000 | 193,000 | 192,800 |
| Unemployed | 5,900 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 |
| Inactive | 38,400 | 38,400 | 38,500 | 38,800 | 39,200 | 39,500 |
| Est. population | 235,700 | 236,400 | 237,100 | 237,800 | 238,200 | 238,300 |