失业率

• Pinyin: shī yè lǜ
• Hanzi breakdown: 失 = 手 + 乙 (to lose); 业 = 木 + 一 (occupation, industry, livelihood); 率 = 玄 + 十 + 丷 (rate, ratio, proportion)

Meaning

The unemployment rate — the percentage of the labour force that is without work and actively seeking employment.

A key macroeconomic indicator closely monitored by governments and financial institutions. Includes the registered unemployment rate (登记失业率) and the surveyed unemployment rate (调查失业率). Common collocations: 失业率攀升 (unemployment rate climbs), 降低失业率 (reduce the unemployment rate), 青年失业率 (youth unemployment rate), 失业率处于历史低点 (unemployment rate at a historic low).

Examples

1. 统计局最新数据显示，受全球经济下行压力影响，本季度城镇调查失业率较上季度上升了零点三个百分点。 The latest data from the statistics bureau shows that, under pressure from the global economic slowdown, the urban surveyed unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage points this quarter compared with last quarter.
2. 政府将稳就业作为宏观调控的核心目标，出台了一系列扶持中小企业的政策，力图将全年失业率控制在预定目标以内。 The government has made stabilizing employment a core macroeconomic goal and introduced a series of policies to support small and medium-sized businesses, aiming to keep the annual unemployment rate within the planned target.
3. 经济学家指出，单一的失业率数字无法全面反映劳动力市场的实际健康状况，还需结合劳动参与率和就业质量等综合指标加以分析。 Economists note that a single unemployment-rate figure can’t fully reflect the true health of the labor market; it also needs to be analyzed alongside indicators like the labor force participation rate and job quality.

Usage Guide

Context: economics, government, labour market, policy, statistics

Tone: analytical

Do Say

• 今年第三季度，青年失业率持续走高的问题引发了政策层面的高度重视，多个部委联合出台了促进应届毕业生就业的专项扶持方案。(In the third quarter of this year, the continued rise in youth unemployment drew intense attention at the policy level, prompting multiple ministries and commissions to jointly introduce a dedicated support plan to promote employment among recent graduates.)
• 结构调整期出现一定失业率很正常，但若超过临界点，政府就要介入防止风险积聚。(A certain unemployment rate during structural adjustment is normal, but if it exceeds a critical point, the government must intervene to prevent risks from building up.)

Don't Say

• 失业率 interchangeably with 就业率 (employment rate) — they measure opposite ends of the same labour market spectrum and conflating the two will produce a serious analytical error

Origin & History

失业 (unemployment: 失 to lose + 业 occupation/livelihood) + 率 (rate, ratio, percentage)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal