EU Loses 1 Million Jobs

BRUSSELS (AP) -- More than 1 million jobs disappeared from the second to third quarters across the entire European Union, the EU's statistic agency said Monday.

It said the numbers of people on payrolls decreased 0.5 percent -- or by 1,019,000 -- in all 27 nations and by 0.5 percent -- or 712,000 -- in the 16 countries that use the euro. Jobs went in all sectors except "other services," which includes public administration, health and education.

Unemployment in the EU is, at 9.8 percent in October, the highest since records began in January 2000 -- and is likely to go over 10 percent before the economy is forecast to recover gradually in the second half of 2010. Some 22.5 million people are now seeking work.

Separately, a European Commission survey showed that just over half of Europeans say that unemployment is the most important issue in their country -- and that 54 percent believe that the worst of the jobs crisis is still to come.

Some 51 percent rated unemployment above the economic situation, inflation or crime as the most important problem facing their country.

For the next 12 months, 30 percent of Europeans think the economic situation will be better, 38 percent thought it would stay the same and 21 percent thought it would be worse. Another 11 percent said they did not know.

Some 30,238 people across Europe were interviewed face-to-face by TNS Opinion & Social for the survey between Oct. 23 and Nov. 18. The survey had a margin of error between 1.9 and 3.1 percentage points.