In the fourth quarter of 2011, the number of persons in employment whose place of employment was in Germany amounted to about 41.6 million. According to provisional results of the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), that was the highest level of employment since German reunification. The number of persons in employment exceeded that of one year earlier by 560,000 or 1.4%. In the second and third quarters of 2011 the rate of change against the preceding year had been 1.3%.
Compared with the third quarter of 2011, the number of persons in employment rose by 303,000 (+0.7%) in the fourth quarter of 2011. Upon seasonal adjustment, that is, after the elimination of seasonal fluctuations, the number of persons in employment was up by 129,000 (+0.3%) on the previous quarter. That is more than twice the average quarterly increase of the last three years (+58,000 persons).
The service sectors accounted for nearly two thirds of the increase in the total number of persons in employment recorded in the fourth quarter of 2011 compared with the fourth quarter of 2010. Here the largest employment gains (204,000 persons; +3.9%) were shown for business services, followed by trade, transport, accommodation and food services with altogether +146,000 persons in employment (+1.5%). There was a slight decrease in employment in the sectors of financial and insurance activities (–2,000 persons; –0.2%) and other services (–22,000 persons; –0.7%) in the fourth quarter of 2011 against one year earlier.
In construction, the number of persons in employment rose by 42,000 (+1.7%) in the fourth quarter of 2011 on a year earlier, in industry (excluding construction) by even 162,000 (+2.1%). In agriculture, forestry and fishing the number of persons in employment fell by 2,000 (–0.3%).
In the fourth quarter of 2011, the number of employees exceeded the 37 million mark for the first time. Compared with the fourth quarter of 2010, it increased by a total of 498,000 persons (+1.4%) to 37.02 million. The number of self-employed including family workers rose by 62,000 (+1.4%) to 4.56 million over the same period.
© destatis
