Nicolas Schmit, the labour minister, and Isabelle Schlesser, head of the Adem jobs agency, said on Thursday that the government would try to tackle the problem of long-term unemployment Thierry Frisch

Nicolas Schmit, the labour minister, and Isabelle Schlesser, head of the Adem jobs agency, said on Thursday that the government would try to tackle the problem of long-term unemployment Thierry Frisch

Luxembourg’s unemployment rate dropped by 4.6% and labour participation rate increased by 3.3% in 2016. The figures were released by Nicolas Schmit, the labour minister, and Adem, the jobs agency. Much credit was given to Adem’s matching site JobBoard, which launched last year; between March and December, employers requested connections with 8,500 jobseekers, and jobseekers sought connections with employers 25,000 times.

Goodyear will open a new test lab at its European HQ in Colmar-Berg. The American tyre maker already employs 3,340 at the site, including 1,000 engineers, researchers and technicians. That makes it one of the grand duchy’s biggest investors in R&D. The new facility will be used to verify performance standards and complete tests for regulatory agencies.

Luxembourg’s association of Catholic jurists concluded a series of four conferences on “the role and the character of a judge” on Thursday evening. Jean-Claude Wiwinius, chief judge of the Superior Court and the Constitutional Court, spoke on the need for transparency. Judges play a special role in the grand duchy “compared to France or the United Kingdom”, according to William Simpson, a lawyer in Luxembourg. “Here the magistrate embodies the authority, the national spirit, they feel that they are the guardian of something.”

This week 10 architects talked about their favourite projects that were conceived by another architect, during a Paperjam Club event. Highlights in pictures.

Jean-Michel Gaudron has received the 2017 “Citi Journalistic Excellence Award”. Gaudron, a senior journalist at Paperjam and the publication’s editor-in-chief between 2007 and 2016, received the business journalism prize for his June 2016 article on the circular economy. He will now participate in a 10-day study tour organised by Columbia University in New York City.