Finnish Jobless Rate Hits 6-Month High

Finland’s unemployment rate rose to 10.4% in January 2026 from 9.5% in the same month last year. This marked the highest reading since May, driven by a rise in the number of unemployed persons, which grew by 26,000 year-on-year to 295,000. Of that total, 166,000 were men and 129,000 were women. The jobless rate for men rose to 11.5%, 1.3 percentage points higher than a year earlier, while the rate for women increased to 9.4%, up 0.6 percentage points. Youth unemployment also rose, with the share of unemployed people aged 15–24 in the labour force reaching 23.7% in January, 3.6 percentage points higher than a year ago. Meanwhile, the number of employed persons decreased by 25 thousand to 2.531 million, while the labor force participation rate edged down to 67.7% from 67.8% a year ago. The employment rate for persons aged 20-64 declined to 74.8% from 75.8%.

Finland’s unemployment rate rose to 9.8% in December 2025 from 8.1% in the same month last year, marking the highest reading since June. The number of unemployed persons increased by 51 thousand from a year earlier to 277 thousand, including 154 thousand men and 123 thousand women. The unemployment rate for people aged 15-24 jumped to 19.5%, which was 2.2 percentage points more than a year ago. Meanwhile, the number of employed persons decreased by 7 thousand to 2.547 million, while the labor force participation rate rose to 67.7% from 66.8% a year ago. The employment rate for persons aged 20-64 decreased to 75.0% from 75.9%.

Finland’s unemployment rate climbed to 9.7% in November 2025 from 8.1% in the same month of the previous year. This marked the highest reading since June, as the number of unemployed persons increased by 50 thousand from a year earlier to 276 thousand, with 151 thousand unemployed men and 125 thousand for women. The unemployment rate for people aged 15 to 24 jumped to 20.5%, which was 5.0 percentage points more than a year ago. Meanwhile, the number of employed persons decreased by 4 thousand to 2.566 million, while the labor force participation rate rose to 68.1% from 67.2% a year ago. The employment rate for persons aged 20 to 64 edged down to 75.6% from 75.7%.