Unem­ploy­ment remains high in Lon­gye­ar­by­en

Unem­ploy­ment has rea­ched levels unhe­ard of in Lon­gye­ar­by­en befo­re during the Coro­na cri­sis and it remains high: curr­ent­ly, 344 per­sons have regis­tered as unem­ploy­ed (com­ple­te­ly or part­ly) with NAV (Arbei­ds- og velferds­for­valt­nin­gen, the Nor­we­gi­an aut­ho­ri­ty for unem­ploy­ment and social secu­ri­ty office), accor­ding to Sval­bard­pos­ten.

Much more dan­ge­rous than polar bears: the Coro­na-virus.
kills peo­p­le and jobs all over the world (pho­to com­po­si­ti­on).

That is only 6 less than during the pre­vious week, in spi­te of pre­pra­ra­ti­ons and boo­kings having star­ted for the first tou­rists from main­land Nor­way who are expec­ted to return to Spits­ber­gen from 01 June.

The high unem­ploy­ment level cau­ses gre­at pro­blems for many. Social wel­fa­re from Nor­way for citi­zens of count­ries out­side EEA (Euro­pean Eco­no­mic Area) is limi­t­ed until 20 June. After that, the only help that citi­zens of such count­ries may get is a sub­s­idy to their tra­vel expen­ses on the jour­ney to their coun­try of ori­gin.

Becau­se of the Spits­ber­gen Trea­ty, the­re is almost com­ple­te libe­ra­li­ty of access, stay and work, but in exch­an­ge, the­re is no social secu­ri­ty by Nor­way for non-Nor­we­gi­an citi­zens.

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