Moscow's Unemployment Rate Reaches 1.7%, Keeps Growing - Deputy Mayor

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th May, 2020) The unemployment level in Moscow has reached 1.7 percent and keeps growing, with 130,000 people registered at the service for labor and employment, Deputy Mayor for Economic Policy Vladimir Efimov has said in an interview with Sputnik.

"If we look at raw figures, unemployment is increasing. We had 30,000 officially registered unemployed persons, while we now have 130,000. But if we look at the percentage of registered unemployment, it amounts to 1.7 percent. This is a very low level," Efimov said.

The procedure for registering at the labor service has been significantly simplified in Moscow, with the job seeker's allowance amounting to 19,500 rubles ($272.

9), the deputy mayor said.

"Out of 100,000 people who have registered recently [at the labor service], Moscow residents who have lost jobs recently account for 30 percent only. The remaining 70,000 were unemployed previously, but were not registered. They have now registered, as the allowance has grown, and many people have decided that applying for it makes sense now," Efimov added.

On May 11, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the country's number of unemployed people had grown to 1.4 million amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which is twice as many as in early April.