The unemployment rate in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development remained unchanged over the month at 5.0% in July 2024.
Compared to June, the unemployment rate was unchanged in July in 16 OECD countries, while declining in nine, and rising in seven.
Six OECD countries recorded an unemployment rate below 3.0%. Only Spain recorded a double-digit rate at 11.5%.
The number of unemployed persons in the OECD rose slightly to a total of 34.8 million, with the largest rise in Japan and the US. In the European Union and the euro area, the unemployment rate remained at record lows of 6.0% and 6.4%, respectively, in July.
It was stable in about half the 17 OECD euro area countries.
Outside Europe, the unemployment rates increased in Japan and the US in July but were stable or decreased in most other OECD countries.
Colombia and Israel recorded the largest drops.
In August, the unemployment rate in Canada increased to 6.6% while it changed little in the United States at 4.2%.
The OECD unemployment rate was broadly stable for both women and men, with rates of 5.2% and 4.9% respectively in July 2024. Although the unemployment rate for women exceeded that of men in the OECD, the European Union, and the euro area, the opposite was true in 55% of the 38 OECD countries in July 2024 (or in the latest period available). The largest gaps in favor of women were observed in Finland and Latvia.
In July 2024, the OECD unemployment rate was broadly stable among youth (aged 15-24) and workers aged 25 and above. The youth unemployment rate remained high, at or above 20%, in 10 OECD countries in July (or in the latest available period). It increased by more than 1.0% in Czechia, Finland, Hungary, Sweden, and Türkiye.
More than half of desk-based workers (57%) feel that they have a ‘good work-life balance’, according to Personio, an HR software company for SMEs.
The poll surveyed over 2,000 workers and 1,000 HR decision-makers in the UK and showed that 45% say they can work flexibly at times that suit them.
Personio’s study comes in as the government’s proposed New Deal for Working People is set to entrench flexible working rights for UK employees.
According to Personio, the return-to-office debate is a key aspect of flexible working. Over half of HR decision makers (56%) report that employees have been reluctant to return to the office post-pandemic. 39% of desk-based workers say that being forced to return to the office more than three days a week would lead them to quit.
This rises to 49% of all 16-24-year-old desk-based employees, suggesting that the youngest employees are the most likely to leave their jobs if flexibility is compromised. Just over half (52%) of 16–24-year-olds also believe that going to the office wastes their time and money, compared to 46% of all desk-based employees.
Meanwhile, the data suggests that there has been a loss of trust in flexible working, with 35% of desk-based employees believing that their company has made false promises regarding flexible working.
This could stem from a breakdown in communication between employees and employers when deciding on hybrid working policies. The research found that while three-quarters (74%) of HR decision-makers say they consulted employees on changes to their hybrid working policy, less than half (45%) of desk-based employees agree.
In a press release, Lenke Taylor, Chief People Officer at Personio, said, “While the office plays an important role in face-to-face collaboration and building social connections, flexible working is here to stay. Businesses need to understand that there is no one size fits all approach to flexible working, and this doesn’t only differ between organizations, but also between departments.”
More than half of companies in Germany (54%) do not want to offer any new part-time positions in the next five years, while 5% are planning to cut the number of part-time staff, according to the Randstad ifo Personnel Manager Survey.
At the same time, 41% of companies are planning to hire new part-time employees.
Meanwhile, companies with 500 employees or more were more frequently considering increasing the number of part-time jobs (49%), around the same number of participants want to keep the number of jobs constant (48%), while 3% want to reduce the number of part-time jobs.
A third of small companies (34%) with up to 49 employees intend to increase the number of part-time employees, while 7% are considering reducing the number of part-time jobs. A comparison of size categories shows that, at 59%, most companies in this group stated that they did not intend to create any new part-time jobs.
Randstad’s survey also found that working from home has no significant impact on the number of part-time employees. Only 7% of participants said that the number of part-time employees had changed due to working from home. In this context, 6% of businesses reported an increase in part-time employees, while only 1% reported a reduction.
For most participants (67%), the introduction of working from home had no effect on part-time positions. Working from home is not possible for 26% of companies. In companies with 250 to 499 employees (82%) and 500 or more employees (88%), an even larger proportion of participants reported that working from home had no impact on part-time positions. In small companies with up to 49 employees, working from home is not possible in 46% of cases, which explains why fewer of them (49%) reported that the number of part-time positions was constant than in other size categories.
Meanwhile, 79% of companies state that they do not provide any incentives to encourage employees to switch from part-time to full-time employment.
Randstad also found that just over three-quarters of participants believe that part-time positions are or would be beneficial for their company. In particular large companies with 500 or more employees hope to benefit from this.
Of the businesses that expect improvements from having part-time employees, 56% hope to be able to increase employee satisfaction, and 51% believe it will improve how they meet their staffing needs. 18% of companies expect an increase in productivity. A comparison of size categories shows that especially companies with 250 employees or more expect increased employee satisfaction as a result of more part-time positions.
When asked about the trend in the proportion of part-time employees in the company over the last five years, the majority responded that this had increased (54%). A further 38% stated that the proportion of part-time employees in the company had remained roughly the same. Just under 5% said that there were now fewer employees with reduced hours. 3% have no part-time positions at all.