| dc.description.abstract | In the second quarter 2005, 63.7% of the working age population (15-64 years of age) held a job or other business activity in the EU-25, compared to 63.1% one year before. Among member states, Spain (from 60.9% to 63.2%) has recorded the highest increase2. The gender gap continues to narrow: while the male employment rate increased by 0.5 points from 70.7% in the second quarter 2004 to 71.2% in the second quarter 2005, the female employment rate rose by 0.8 points in a year, to reach 56.3% of women aged 15 to 64 years. As a result of the rise in the employment rate, the share of the active population aged 15-64 (employed plus unemployed people) in the whole population of the same age increased, to reach 70.1% in the 2nd quarter 2005, compared to 69.5% one year before. The unemployment rate did not significantly decrease in this period3, still above 9% for the age 15-64. |
