Unemployment Rate 18.7% in Second Quarter of 2011

Unemployment rate hit 18.7% in the Palestinian Territory in the second quarter of 2011: 15.4% in the West Bank and 25.6% in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). In a report released Tuesday, PCBS said the West Bank unemployment rate was highest in Qalqilya at 21.1%, while in the Gaza Strip, it was highest in Rafah at 31.0%. The unemployment rate for males was 16.4% compared to 28.6% for females. According to the relaxed definition of unemployment, which includes persons looking for work, the unemployment rate fell from 27.7% in the 1st quarter of 2011 to 24.0% in the 2nd quarter of 2011. There was an increase in employment in the local market between the 1st quarter and 2nd quarter of 2011, with the number of employed persons in the West Bank increasing by 39,000 compared with an increase of 27,000 in the Gaza Strip. The services sector was the largest employer in the local market with a percentage of 38.5%: 32.0% in the West Bank and 52.0% in the Gaza Strip. The public sector employed 21.6% of working persons: 38.6% in the Gaza Strip and 14.5% in the West Bank. The average daily wage for waged employees in the West Bank was 84.8 NIS ($24.2) compared with 61.8 NIS ($17.6) in the Gaza Strip. The number of workers employed in Israel and Israeli settlements increased from 78,000 in the 1st quarter to 84,000 in the 2nd quarter of 2011, with 51.0% of these working in the construction sector. The average daily wage for workers employed in Israel and Israeli settlements was 160 NIS ($45.7). About 66.4% of employed workers in the Palestinian Territory are waged employees: 64.7% in the West Bank and 70.3% in the Gaza Strip.19.4% of employed persons are self-employed: 19.0% in the West Bank and 20.3% in the Gaza Strip. 7.9% of employed persons are unpaid family members: 8.7% in the West Bank and 6.4% in the Gaza Strip, and 6.3% of employed persons are employers: 7.6% in the West Bank and 3.0% in the Gaza Strip. Child employment was at 4.0% of children aged 10-17 years in the Palestinian Territory: 5.5% in the West Bank and 1.7% in the Gaza Strip.