How is the current economic crisis affecting unemployment?
Unemployment rates rose in seven comparator countries, including Canada, in 2008. The biggest jump in unemployment occurred in the United States—from 4.6 per cent in 2007 to 5.8 per cent in 2008. The U.S. shed nearly 400,000 jobs in 2008, primarily in the manufacturing and construction sectors. And the situation in the U.S. got worse as the year went on. The U.S. unemployment rate increased steadily from April to December, ending the year at 7.2 per cent. Ireland also experienced a sharp increase in its unemployment rate—from 4.6 per cent in 2007 to 6.3 per cent in 2008. As in the U.S., Ireland’s unemployment situation deteriorated as the year went on. By December 2008, the Irish unemployment rate was 8.7 per cent, the highest rate of the 17 comparator countries.
