Unemployment rate rises to 9.2% in Türkiye

Türkiye’s unemployment rate increased for the first time in five months, climbing to 9.2% in June, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).

This marks a 0.7 percentage point rise from the previous month, driven by significant increases in joblessness among women and the youth.

Unemployment data for Türkiye

• The number of unemployed people increased by 234,000 from May, reaching 3.3 million in June.
• The unemployment rate for women saw a notable increase, rising from 11.3% to 12.4%, while for men, it climbed from 7.1% to 7.6%.
• Youth unemployment surged by 1.7 percentage points, reaching 17.6%.
• The gender gap is more pronounced among the youth, with unemployment among young women rising from 20.9% to 23.2% – compared to an increase from 13.3% to 14.8% among young men.

Labor force participation

• The labor force participation rate decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 54.4%.
• The number of employed individuals fell by 341,000, dropping to 32.5 million.
• The total labor force shrank by 107,000, decreasing to 35.8 million.

Underemployment: The broadly defined unemployment rate, which includes time-related underemployment and potential labor force, rose by 3.2 percentage points to 29.2% in June.

Working hours in Türkiye

• The average weekly working hours remained stable at 44 hours.
• Men worked an average of 45.7 hours per week, while women averaged 40.3 hours.

How does unemployment data evolve in Türkiye?

• Unemployment was 7.4% in November and 8.8% in December 2023, ending the year with an average of 9.4%.
• The rate was 9.1% in January 2024 and then decreased steadily to 8.5% in both April and May before rising again in June.