Statistics : Harmonised Unemployment Rates

The OECD harmonised unemployment rates, compiled for all 34 OECD member countries, are based on definitions of the 13th Conference of Labour Statisticians (generally referred to as the ILO guidelines). Under these definitions, the unemployed are persons of working age who, in the reference period: − are without work; − are available for work; and, − have taken specific steps to find work. The uniform application of the definitions results in estimates that are more internationally comparable than those based on national definitions. For example, national unemployment data in some countries only include persons registered at government labour offices. Under the ILO definition, persons without work who are seeking employment through other means can also be classified as unemployed and registrants can be excluded if they worked or were not available for work. The unemployment rates shown here are calculated as the number of unemployed persons as a percentage of the labour force (i.e., the unemployed plus those in employment) and are seasonally adjusted.
In January 2016, the OECD Labour and Employment Ministers invited the OECD to review and update the OECD Jobs Strategy to provide comprehensive and up-to-date policy advice for achieving an inclusive labour market that performs strongly in the context of demographic change, environmental challenges, globalisation, ongoing technological progress and changes in work organisation.