Türkiye’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 8.2% in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 0.4 percentage point decline from the previous quarter, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) announced on Friday.

According to data from the Household Labour Force Survey, the number of unemployed individuals aged 15 and over decreased by 183,000, bringing the total to 2.88 million. The jobless rate was recorded at 6.6% for men and 11.2% for women.

Despite the drop in unemployment, the employment rate also experienced a decline, falling by 0.5 percentage points to 48.9%. The total number of employed individuals fell by 266,000 to 32.39 million. Employment rates stood at 66.3% for men and 31.9% for women.

Labour force participation also declined, with a seasonally adjusted rate of 53.3%, down 0.8 percentage points from the previous quarter. The labour force shrank by 449,000 to 35.27 million people. Participation rates were 71.0% for men and 36.0% for women.

Youth Unemployment Falls

In the 15–24 age group, the youth unemployment rate fell to 15.0%, a 0.9-point decrease quarter-on-quarter. Young men saw a rate of 10.8%, while young women faced a significantly higher rate of 22.7%.

Service Sector Dominates Employment

Sectoral data revealed that 58.2% of employed persons worked in the services sector. Employment fell in agriculture (down 171,000), industry (down 61,000), and services (down 37,000), while construction saw a modest increase of 3,000 jobs. The distribution of employment by sector stood at 14.3% in agriculture, 20.8% in industry, 6.6% in construction, and 58.2% in services.

Underemployment and Labour Underutilization

The composite measure of labour underutilization—which includes time-related underemployment, potential labour force, and unemployment—rose to 28.5%, up by 0.4 points from the previous quarter. The combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment was 18.4%, while the combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force was 19.6%.

Working Hours on the Rise

The seasonally and calendar-adjusted average weekly actual working hours for those employed rose by 0.6 hours to reach 43.5 hours during the reference period.

The latest data reflect persistent structural challenges in Türkiye’s labour market, including gender gaps in employment and participation, youth joblessness, and ongoing underutilization of labour resources. (ILKHA)