In Q4 2012, the average ILO unemployment rate in metropolitan France and overseas departments stood at 10.6% of the active population.
In metropolitan France only, with 2.9 million unemployed people, 10.2% of the active population was unemployed. The unemployment rate increased by 0.3 percentage points q-o-q. Over a year, it increased by 0.8 point, and by 3.4 percentage points for people aged 15-24 years.
More generally, in metropolitan France, 3.7 million people did not work but would like to work, whether they are available or not for work within two weeks, or whether they look actively for a job or not (see additional indicators on the internet).
ILO-unemployment rate

Estimation close to +/-0.3 point of the unemployment rate
Estimation close to +/-0.3 point of the quaterly variation of the unemployment rate
France = Metropolitan France + overseas departments
Covers the population of people living in households, people aged 15 years or more
Source: INSEE, Labour Force Survey
| Seasonally adjusted, average over quarter - Metropolitan France | |||||||||||||||||
| *(p) = provisional results | |||||||||||||||||
| Covers the population of people living in households in metropolitan France, people aged 15 years or more | |||||||||||||||||
| Source: INSEE, Labour Force Survey | |||||||||||||||||
| ILO-unemployment rate (%) | Variation in point | Thousands | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012Q3 | 2012Q4 (p)* | over quarter | over year | 2012Q4 (p)* | |||||||||||||
| Total | 9.9 | 10.2 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 2 944 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 24.1 | 25.7 | 1.6 | 3.4 | 730 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 9.0 | 9.1 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1 653 | ||||||||||||
| 50 years and more | 6.8 | 7.2 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 560 | ||||||||||||
| Men | 9.7 | 10.2 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1 532 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 24.0 | 25.6 | 1.6 | 3.6 | 398 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 8.6 | 8.8 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 834 | ||||||||||||
| 50 years and more | 6.8 | 7.4 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 300 | ||||||||||||
| Women | 10.0 | 10.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1 412 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 24.2 | 25.8 | 1.6 | 3.2 | 332 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 9.3 | 9.4 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 819 | ||||||||||||
| 50 years and more | 6.9 | 6.9 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 260 | ||||||||||||
The employment rate of the population aged 15-64 years increased by 0.2 percentage points in Q4 2012 and stood at 64.1%. This rebound comes from people aged 50-64 years: their employment rate was up by 0.5 point q-o-q (+2.1 percentage points y-o-y).
Employment rate by age group

Covers the population of people living in households, people aged 15-64 years
Source: INSEE, Labour Force Survey
The employment rate of people aged 25-49 years had decreased over the year (-0.4 percentage points), and stabilizes in Q4 2012 (+0.1 percentage points); as well as for people ages 15-24 years (-0.9 percentage points y-o-y).
| Seasonally adjusted, average over quarter - Metropolitan France | |||||||||||||||||
| *(p) = provisional results | |||||||||||||||||
| Covers the population of people living in households in metropolitan France, people aged 15 years or more | |||||||||||||||||
| (1) those data cover the people who are 15-64 years old. They are a little bit different from the data in table 1 (which covers the total population). | |||||||||||||||||
| Source: INSEE, Labour Force Survey | |||||||||||||||||
| % of people in the age group | Variation in point | Thousands (1) | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012Q3 | 2012Q4 (p)* | Over quarter | Over year | 2012Q4 (p)* | |||||||||||||
| Employed people (15-64 years) | 63.9 | 64.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 25 632 | ||||||||||||
| Full-time equivalent employment rate | 59.5 | 59.7 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 23 876 | ||||||||||||
| Men aged 15-64 | 68.1 | 68.1 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 13 395 | ||||||||||||
| Women aged 15-64 | 59.9 | 60.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 12 237 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 28.5 | 28.5 | 0.0 | –0.9 | 2 115 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 80.8 | 80.9 | 0.1 | –0.4 | 16 491 | ||||||||||||
| 50-64 years | 57.2 | 57.7 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 7 026 | ||||||||||||
| Included : 55-64 years | 44.8 | 45.8 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 3 658 | ||||||||||||
| Core employment rate of 55-64 years | 44.6 | 45.8 | 1.2 | 3.0 | |||||||||||||
| Unemployed persons (15-64 years) | 7.0 | 7.4 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 2 942 | ||||||||||||
| Men aged 15-64 | 7.4 | 7.8 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 1 531 | ||||||||||||
| Women aged 15-64 | 6.7 | 6.9 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 1 411 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 9.0 | 9.9 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 730 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 8.0 | 8.1 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 1 653 | ||||||||||||
| 50-64 years | 4.3 | 4.6 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 558 | ||||||||||||
| Included : 55-64 years | 3.4 | 3.7 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 295 | ||||||||||||
| Active people (15-64 years) | 71.0 | 71.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 28 574 | ||||||||||||
| Men aged 15-64 | 75.5 | 75.9 | 0.4 | 1.1 | 14 926 | ||||||||||||
| Women aged 15-64 | 66.6 | 67.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 13 648 | ||||||||||||
| 15-24 years | 37.5 | 38.4 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 2 846 | ||||||||||||
| 25-49 years | 88.8 | 89.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 18 144 | ||||||||||||
| 50-64 years | 61.5 | 62.2 | 0.7 | 2.6 | 7 585 | ||||||||||||
| Included : 55-64 years | 48.3 | 49.5 | 1.2 | 3.7 | 3 954 | ||||||||||||
| Active life expectancy of 55-64 years (years) | 4.8 | 4.9 | 0.1 | 0.3 | |||||||||||||
Permanent contracts decreased by 0.1 percentage points in Q4 2012, at 49.0% of the population aged 15-64, whereas temporary contracts increased by 0.1 percentage points and stood at 6.7%.
The full time equivalent employment rate was lower by 4 percentage points than the employment rate: it stood at 59.7% on average in Q4 2012.
The activity rate of the 15-64 years increased by 0.5 percentage points, at 71.5%.
In Q4 2012, 5.3% of the persons employed were underemployed, rising by 0.1 percentage points. Slack work stood at 0.4%.
The unwanted part-time picked up by 0.2 percentage points and stood at 4.9% of the employed (see additional indicators on the internet).
| Seasonally adjusted, average over quarter - Metropolitan France | |||||||||||||||||
| *(p) = provisional results | |||||||||||||||||
| Covers the population of people living in households in metropolitan France, people aged 15 years or more | |||||||||||||||||
| Source : INSEE, Labour Force Survey | |||||||||||||||||
| ILO underemployment rate (%) | Variation in point | Thousands | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012Q3 | 2012Q4 (p)* | Over a quarter | Over a year | 2012Q4 (p)* | |||||||||||||
| Total | 5.2 | 5.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1 375 | ||||||||||||
| Included : slack work | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 96 | ||||||||||||
| Women | 7.9 | 7.9 | 0.0 | –0.2 | 979 | ||||||||||||
| Men | 2.7 | 2.9 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 396 | ||||||||||||
The ILO unemployment rate of Q3 2012 is not revised compared to the temporary publication of December 2012.
n° 55 - March 7, 2013
ILO Unemployment and Labour Market-related indicators (Labour Force Survey results) - 4th Quarter 2012
More: Long time series about the labour market, data on January 2010, in French only
unemployment by "régions", by "départements", and by employment area
Guadeloupe, La Réunion, Martinique, Guyane
The series published until July 2007: methodology and data (.PDF, 25 KB), in French only
Since July 2009, display of the Informations Rapides has changed.