Turkey's unemployment rate 10.5 percent in November

The unemployment rate in November 2015 was 10.5 percent, marking a 0.2 percentage point decrease compared to November 2014. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), the number of unemployed people aged 15 years old and over was 3,125,000, an increase of 29,000 people over the same period in 2014.

Commenting on the 10.5 percent unemployment rate, Minister of the Economy Mehmet Şimşek said that without reforms increasing flexibility in the labor market, it will not be possible to bring the unemployment rate below double digits.

In the same period, the non-agricultural unemployment rate was 12.4 percent, marking a 0.3 percentage decrease. The employment rate is 45.8 percent, marking an increase of 0.7 percent. The number of employed people aged 15 years old and over is 26,676,000, marking an increase of 802,000 for November 2015 compared to November 2014.

Agricultural employment decreased by 26,000, and non-agricultural employment increased by 828,000. Of those who were employed 19.3 percent were employed in agriculture, 20.1 percent were employed in industry, 7.5 percent were employed in construction, and 53.1 percent were employed in services.

The labor force in November 2015 numbered 29, 801,000, an increase of 831,000 compared to November 2014. The labor force participation rate is 51.2 percent, marking an increase of 0.7 percent.