Unemployment rose over the spring, according to both the government's count of registered jobseekers and the statistics agency's monthly survey-based report.
There were 87,000 fewer people in full time employment in Finland in June this year compared to the same month last year, according to the latest figures from the Labour Force Survey conducted by the national statistical institution Statistics Finland.
The restrictive measures and economic impact of the coronavirus crisis during the spring contributed significantly to the decline in Finland’s rate of employment, which now stands at 72.4 percent.
According to Statistics Finland, the unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in June, meaning there were 47,000 more people unemployed than at the same time last year.
The figures have been adjusted for factors such as seasonal variation
Statistics Finland also revised the employment rate figure provided in May, which had been reported as 72.6 percent, but has now been adjusted to 72.5 percent.
Uncertainty over true number of unemployed
According to Statistics Finland’s data, the number of people unemployed in Finland currently stands at 223,000.
Figures provided on Tuesday by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment suggests that the true number is much higher.
The ministry’s estimate is based on the registration data of regional Employment and Economic Development offices (or TE-toimisto), and revealed that there were a total of 416,900 unemployed jobseekers registered at their offices at the end of June 2020, a year-on-year increase of 162,700.
The discrepancy between the figures can be at least partially explained by the ministry’s inclusion of furloughed workers in its unemployment figure. While the ministry counts everyone registered as unemployed, which includes furloughed workers as they need to register to claim benefits, the Labour Force Survey asks a sample of people if they are unemployed.
The ministry also reported a higher unemployment figure, which stands at 7.9 percent according to its data, representing a 1.8 percentage point increase from June last year.
This figure includes 75,200 long term unemployed -- which the ministry defines as people who have been unemployed without interruption for more than a year -- and is also up, by 11,400 on last year.
In addition, there were estimated to be 179,000 "hidden unemployed" people in June, which is 47,000 more than a year earlier. Hidden unemployment refers to people who would like a job, but have not actively sought one.