That’s according to a report issued by Statec, Luxembourg’s national statistics body, on 28 May.

Statec said that employment in the grand duchy fell -1.5% during the course of March, compared to a +0.2% rise in February. “The first provisional figures for April indicate a drop, albeit less than in March,” the report stated.

The partial unemployment programme preserved thousands of jobs and will even help create new posts, Statec reckoned. “In Luxembourg, job retention measures will probably [allow] employment [to] grow slightly in 2020 and 2021 (+0.8% and +1%, respectively, against +3.6% in 2019.”

The statistics bureau estimated that about 6.5% of the workforce took emergency family leave. (Separate figures disclosed by the social security minister on 27 May put that number at around 9%.)

Nevertheless, Statec forecast that jobless claims would rise +29% this year and +10% next year.

The Statec report also noted that total employer costs dropped -2.4% in March, after gaining +3% in January and February. The short-time working scheme accounted for about half of the decline. The rest was due to fewer paid overtime hours, bonuses and sales commissions. The largest reversals were recorded in the hospitality (-24% compared to a year ago) and construction (-19%) sectors.