Employment: The battle over numbers is reignited
A new tug-of-war has been launched between the government and the High Commissioner’s Office for Planning (HCP). This time, the battle concerns employment and unemployment figures. The latest HCP statistics show a deterioration in the labor market in the third quarter. The employment rate fell by 1.6% and unemployment climbed to 13.5%.
Had it not been for the fall in the activity rate, which stood at 43.2%, the level of unemployment would have been higher (see our November 10 issue). Minister Youness Sekkouri was challenged by members of the House of Councilors on this rise in unemployment and the destruction of jobs in recent months. Speaking during the weekly Question Time session, the Minister for Economic Inclusion, Small Business and Employment tried to put things into perspective, highlighting the rise in quality in terms of new job creation compared to those lost. The follow-up to the results of the national employment survey highlights «the creation of new jobs, especially in the salaried sector. This shows the structural and qualitative transformation that the labor market is undergoing», according to the Minister.
For him, «most job losses concern unpaid employment, particularly in rural areas, especially in the agricultural sector». He recalled that in the third quarter of this year, the number of jobs lost reached 297,000, mainly in rural areas, «due to low agricultural yields, particularly as a result of the repercussions of climate change». This is coupled with «a decline in the services and construction sectors in the creation of new jobs, given the difficult economic context». In the self-employment sector, a record 686,000 jobs were lost in Q3, compared with an annual average of 134,000 jobs created during the same period in 2021 and 2022. This, too, is a record. The results of the national employment survey reveal that most of these positions are unpaid. In response to criticism from M.P.s, the Minister explained that «the number of new jobs created, which are more qualitative than those lost, has not made it possible to meet the new demands for work, nor to absorb the jobs destroyed, especially in the agricultural sector. This has resulted in a rise in the unemployment rate». In his view, «the labor market has undergone a qualitative and structural transformation».
Sekkouri insisted that this evolution towards decent work is linked to the programs put in place to generalize social protection and promote employment. Critics have nevertheless pointed to the malfunctioning of some of the programs launched, and to the precariousness of the jobs created under certain projects such as Awrach.
M.A.M.
