Labour Market
Unemployment rate
The unemployment rate is the share of the labor force that is jobless, actively seeking work, and available to start, expressed as a percentage. A rate of 4% means 4 out of every 100 people in the labor force are currently without a job but looking — it excludes people who have stopped searching entirely.
Why it matters
It's the headline labour-market number on every country page and a core input to policy-rate decisions.
Also known as: jobless rate