COVID-19 wipes out around 12.2% of Georgia’s jobs as of Q1

COVID-19 wipes out around 12.2% of Georgia’s jobs as of Q1
The number of formally employed Georgians decreased by 12.2% y/y in Q1 to 782,000, implying that around 108,000 jobs were wiped out by the coronavirus-driven crisis.
By bne IntelIiNews May 21, 2021

The number of formally employed Georgians decreased by 12.2% y/y in Q1 to 782,000, implying that around 108,000 jobs were wiped out by the coronavirus-driven crisis that mostly hit the “HoReCa” food service and hotel industries sector of a country that is reliant on tourism.

Georgia’s unemployment rate hit 21.9% in Q1, up by 3.7pp y/y. And the increase would have been steeper if some 80,000 Georgians had simply given up seeking a job. The population outside the labour force, the active population, exceeded for the first time in recent years half of the working-age population as labour force participation rate dropped to 48.3% of the active population, down from 51.3% last year.

The number of unemployed people in Georgia increased by nearly 35,000 to 317,500 in Q1, accounting for 10.6% of the working age population (or 21.9% of the active population).

While this was not the highest unemployment in recent years (the jobless rate was higher in Q1 of 2018), the low number of jobs is a more significant concern for social impact and economic growth. Compared to the first quarter of 2018 (when the number of people seeking a job was 9% bigger than in Q1 this year), the jobs count in Georgia’s economy dropped by 9.3%, or by 80,000. As compared to the pre-crisis period, the jobless rate should be adjusted to reflect discouraged workers who have given up hope of finding a job, at least for a good while.

Georgia: Labour Force [thous] Q1 18 Q1 19 Q1 20 Q2 20 Q3 20 Q4 20 Q1 21 % y/y 000s y/y
Total 15 + population 3038.3 3029.2 3013.1 3012.9 3036.8 3011.3 2994.8 -0.6% -18.3 
Labour force (Active population), total 1592.0 1593.2 1545.2 1515.0 1528.9 1505.7 1447.2 -6.3% -98.0 
Employed 1246.4 1279.8 1262.7 1237.6 1269.1 1197.9 1129.7 -10.5% -132.9 
     Hired 863.3 896.7 891.2 839.5 845.3 805.1 782.8 -12.2% -108.3 
     Self-employed 382.6 382.6 370.8 397.6 423.1 391.9 345.7 -6.8% -25.2 
     Not-identified worker 0.5 0.4 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.9 1.2 81.0% 0.5 
Unemployed 345.6 313.5 282.6 277.4 259.8 307.8 317.5 12.4% 34.9 
Population outside the labour force 1446.2 1435.9 1467.8 1497.9 1507.9 1505.6 1547.6 5.4% 79.7 
Unemployment rate, percentage 21.7 19.7 18.3 18.3 17.0 20.4 21.9 20.0% 3.7 
Labour force participation rate (Economic activity rate), percentage 52.4 52.6 51.3 50.3 50.3 50.0 48.3 -3.0 -3.0 
Employment rate, percentage 41.0 42.2 41.9 41.1 41.8 39.8 37.7 -10.0% -4.2 
Source: GeoStat                  

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