It is the data on inactive to faithfully photograph the social situation of the country. Istat discloses a disheartening reality: in 2011 the inactive people who did not seek employment, despite remaining available to work, were 2 million 897 thousand, up by 4,8% compared to 2010.
Out of the total workforce, the share of inactive people grew from 11,1% to 11,6%, well three times the European average, Equal to 3,6%. In the group, the discouraged: I'm almost there half of the total, equal to about 1,2 million units, who declared that they had not looked for a job because they were convinced they could not find it.
The inactive, in Italy, constitute a numerically larger group than that of the unemployed tout-court (2 million 108 thousand in 2011), while in Europe the picture is reversed: the unemployed constitute a group twice as large as that of the inactive.
Of the latter, in 2011, those looking for a job, however not being available to work immediately, amounted to 121 units (a decrease of 4,4%), but this is a minimal fraction compared to the forces of total work, equal to 0,5%, while in Europe they represent a larger slice, equal to 1%.
By adding the potential labor force to the unemployed, we obtain the people potentially employable in the production process: in 2011, these amounted to about 5 million units.
Again in 2011, the part-time underemployed numbered 451 (+3,9%, equal to 17 more than in 2010) and represent 1,8% of the total workforce. In the European Union the incidence is equal to 3,6%.
