The number of persons registering as unemployed increased by 19.9% in March when compared to the same month in 2019. When compared to February 2020, unemployment in March increased by 28%. This is in contrast to the trend seen in the past few years where the number of unemployed persons was constantly going down.

The number of unemployed persons in March stood at 2,125 compared to 1,659 people one month earlier. In total, 466 people were made redundant in March 2020.  March 2020 was the month when the COVID restrictive measures started to be introduced. A graphical representation of the 466 people that were made redundant is shown in the figures below.

According to a survey carried out by EMCS, A total of 33% of those in the private sector fear losing their job in the next three months indicated that unemployment will increase further in the near future.

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            Unemployment in Malta and Gozo went up by 29.7% and 12.6% respectively.

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In percentage terms, the largest increases where registered in the 25 -29 and 30-44 age groups with an increase of 53.0% and 44.2% respectively

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Unemployment among males increased by 22.7% while unemployment among females increased by 40.7%

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In percentage terms, unemployment increased the most among technicians and associate professionals with an increase of 45.9%