Luxembourg’s unemployment rate - which was extremely low in the 1970s and 1980s, and in the 1990s increased considerably but still remained low compared with other countries - has since 2004 been close to 5%. This report first compares Luxembourg’s experience with that of "reference countries", which also provide a high level of social protection. as measured by the level of unemployment insurance and minimum income benefits. The country’s small size and the importance of cross-border commuting in the country has certain advantages for the Public Employment Service (PES) and generates some additional constraints, but the policy options remain generally similar to those tried by the other reference countries. Several of these countries (Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland) also had very low unemployment into the 1980s. In general, the countries which first introduced generous unemployment benefits only in the 1970s suffered high levels of unemployment about 20 years later, and from this point of view the PES in Luxembourg has managed to keep unemployment relatively low longer than almost anywhere else. The steady increase in the level of registered unemployment relative to unemployment in the sense of the labour force survey from 1975 to 2000 indicates progressive change: the rigorous management and the stigmatisation of unemployment which motivated unemployed people not to register in the early years has been progressively replaced by a situation where some people who register are not available for all types of work. The introduction of a minimum income benefit in 1986 and various extensions of entitlement to passive benefits in 2002 and 2003 have also increased the number of PES clients who are difficult to place...">
Le taux de chômage au Luxembourg - minime pendant les années 70 et 80 puis en forte augmentation, bien que toujours bas par rapport aux autres pays, dans les années 90 - est depuis 2004 à près de 5%. Ce rapport compare d’abord la situation au Luxembourg avec celle de "pays de référence" qui ont également un bon niveau de protection sociale, mesuré par le niveau des allocations de chômage et du revenu minimum. La petite taille du pays et le rôle important du travail frontalier présentent certains avantages pour le Service public de l’emploi (SPE) et ils génèrent certaines contraintes supplémentaires, mais les options de politique comme leurs impacts attendus restent globalement similaires à ceux expérimentés par les autres pays de référence. Plusieurs de ces pays (le Norvège, la Suède, la Suisse) avaient également des taux de chômage très bas jusque dans les années 80. En général, les pays qui ont introduit une indemnisation généreuse du chômage dans les années 70 ont subi des niveaux de chômage plus élevés environ 20 ans plus tard. Selon cette perspective, le Service public de l’emploi (SPE) au Luxembourg a réussi à maintenir le chômage à des niveaux relativement bas plus longtemps que presque partout ailleurs. L'augmentation progressive du chômage inscrit par rapport au chômage au sens de l'enquête entre 1975 et 2000 témoigne pourtant d’une tendance de fond : la gestion rigoureuse et la stigmatisation du chômage qui décourageait les chômeurs de s’inscrire dans les premières années a été remplacée par une situation où les demandeurs inscrits ne sont pas disponibles pour tout type de travail. L'introduction du revenu minimum garanti (RMG) en 1986 et les élargissements des droits à l'indemnisation passive conditionnée à l’inscription comme demandeur d’emploi en 2002 et 2003 ont aussi contribué à l'augmentation du nombre de clients du Service public de l’emploi difficiles à placer... Luxembourg’s unemployment rate - which was extremely low in the 1970s and 1980s, and in the 1990s increased considerably but still remained low compared with other countries - has since 2004 been close to 5%. This report first compares Luxembourg’s experience with that of "reference countries", which also provide a high level of social protection. as measured by the level of unemployment insurance and minimum income benefits. The country’s small size and the importance of cross-border commuting in the country has certain advantages for the Public Employment Service (PES) and generates some additional constraints, but the policy options remain generally similar to those tried by the other reference countries. Several of these countries (Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland) also had very low unemployment into the 1980s. In general, the countries which first introduced generous unemployment benefits only in the 1970s suffered high levels of unemployment about 20 years later, and from this point of view the PES in Luxembourg has managed to keep unemployment relatively low longer than almost anywhere else. The steady increase in the level of registered unemployment relative to unemployment in the sense of the labour force survey from 1975 to 2000 indicates progressive change: the rigorous management and the stigmatisation of unemployment which motivated unemployed people not to register in the early years has been progressively replaced by a situation where some people who register are not available for all types of work. The introduction of a minimum income benefit in 1986 and various extensions of entitlement to passive benefits in 2002 and 2003 have also increased the number of PES clients who are difficult to place...
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