UN: West Bank labor market 'deteriorating'

Ma'an- Employment numbers in the West Bank are falling, and real wages are following suit, a new report from the UN's Near East refugee agency said Wednesday.

The findings, officials say, "challenge the conventional picture of a flourishing West Bank economy."

Refugees were worst hit by the declining labor conditions, UNRWA said, which were measured for the second half of 2010.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

While employment grew, labor force participation declined at a higher rate, the agency said, assuming some of those dropping out of the labor market were giving up on finding jobs.

According to UNRWA's findings, the real unemployment rate in the West Bank stood at 25 percent in the second half of 2010, up from 23.5 percent in 2009.

In addition to what UNRWA cataloged as a real increase in unemployment, its study found that workers were able to purchase less with their earnings, as inflation on consumer goods outpaced wage increases. The real value of wages declined three percent, the study reported. Read more