Dutch unemployment falls as workers leave the workforce

There were fewer unemployed people in the Netherlands in February, reports Statistics Netherlands. The drop is due to the workforce decreasing by 13,000 people, while the number of employed remained virtually unchanged compared to January. The unemployment rate fell from 7.2 percent in January to 7.1 percent last month. There are currently 633,000 unemployed people in the Netherlands, 12,000 less than in January. The number of employed in the Netherlands remained virtually unchanged in February, decreasing by just a thousand people. The workforce included 7,000 more people below age 25 and 4,000 more between ages 45 and 75. On the other hand, there were 12,000 fewer working people between ages 25 and 45. In February, 455,000 people claimed unemployment benefits, which was 2,500 less than in January.