Turkey’s unemployment rate at 8.4% in May, gender gap persists

Turkey’s unemployment rate declined by 0.1 percentage points to 8.4% in May compared to the previous month, marking the lowest in 12 years, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) has announced. The number of unemployed was recorded as 3.01 million, with a reduction of 27,000 in a month.

The data also reveals a persistent disparity between men's and women's employment rates. The unemployment rate for men stood at 7%, while it was higher for women at 11%. This gap is further accentuated in the employment rates, with 67.3% of men being employed compared to 33% of women.

The broader measure of unemployment, which includes time-related underemployment, potential labor force, and the unemployed, also known as the expanded definition of unemployment, decreased by 2 percentage points to 25.2%.

The employment rate in Turkey has risen to 50%, with an increase of 273,000 employed individuals, totaling 32.92 million⁴. The labor force participation rate saw a slight increase of 0.3 percentage points, reaching 54.5%. Men's participation rate was measured at 72.4%, while women's participation was significantly lower at 37.1%.

Youth unemployment, covering the age group of 15-24, experienced a slight increase of 0.3 percentage points to 15%. Within this demographic, the unemployment rate for young men was 12.8%, whereas it was higher for young women at 19.3%.

The average actual working hours per week, adjusted for seasonal and calendar effects, was recorded at 43.9 hours. (HA/VK)