Taiwan’s unemployment rate averaged 3.71 percent in 2018, down 0.05 of a percentage point from the year before to its lowest level in 18 years, according to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics Jan. 22.
The latest DGBAS figures revealed that this was the best result since 2000 when the jobless rate stood at 2.99 percent. The average number of unemployed fell to 440,000, a decrease of 3,000 or 0.7 percent from 12 months ago.
Those with jobs tallied 11.43 million, up 82,000 or 0.73 percent, while the labor participation rate gained 0.16 of a percentage point to 58.99 percent, continuing its upward trend for nine years in a row since 2009.
According to the DGBAS, these positive numbers indicate that despite pressure from a slack economy, the country’s employment situation has been better than expected.
In terms of educational level, those with college degrees posted the highest jobless rate at 5.12 percent for the year. Youth aged 20-24 topped other age groups with an unemployment rate of 11.98 percent.
Taiwan’s services sector remained the biggest contributor to employment during the period, accounting for 59.38 percent of the job market. It was followed by the industrial and agricultural sectors at 35.71 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively.
The positive labor market sentiment was also reflected in the average monthly wages of the industrial and services sectors, which picked up 3.97 percent in the first 11 months of 2018 to a record NT$52,059 (US$1,685). (SFC-E)
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