Another spike in unemployment in Europe: causes
Experts have analyzed the EU economy for the current year. In their opinion, the unemployment rate may spike up to 38% compared to the previous period. This situation is a consequence of a slowdown in the global economy and recovery from the pandemic. About 6.6 million people were unemployed in Europe in the third quarter of 2020; now the number has risen to 13.7 million. At the same time, the government regularly introduces programs to protect people from loss of earnings and keep citizens employed. According to experts, the unemployment rate in France and Italy will reach its peak in 2022. As for Germany and Spain, here since 2020 there are high rates, and they will not grow significantly.
Thanks to the programs introduced by the government, about 25 million people were able to keep their jobs. Over time, however, the problem of finding a job worsens, which can have negative consequences for the economic development of the European Union. In addition, the lack of livelihoods can lead people to protest, shattering fragile stability and leading to unrest and dissatisfaction with political governance.
As a result of thepandemic and other trials that have haunted the world for 2 years, Europe’s economy has declined by 6.8%. Activity began to decline in late 2020, and the same trend continued in 2021.
Germany is considered the largest economy in the region. Here, in May 2020, the unemployment rate reached a record high of the last four years. The number of people who were out of work was 2.8 million, increasing by 238,000 in just one month. Over the next year, another 3 million citizens lost their jobs. More than 7 million people receive subsidies from the authorities, which in one way or another compensate for the lack of permanent income or its reduction. The largest percentage of people who lost their jobs are in the tourism and service industries. As we know, these sectors were hit hardest by the pandemic.
Despite the gradual recovery of markets, the employment process still has a number of difficulties and is progressing very slowly. It is affected by the effects of the pandemic, which have had a delayed effect. Business activity is growing, but companies are still cautious about hiring new employees for fear of new outbreaks.
The German government has allocated an additional 156 billion euros to support the economy and reduce unemployment. This amount was then increased by another 100 billion euros.
