German employment declined for the first time in four years in the third quarter of 2009.

According to the federal statistics office, the number of labor market members in work fell to 40.4 million year-on-year in the three months to September 30th, equivalent to the loss of 81,000 jobs.

However, employment actually grew by 0.4 per cent - or 149,000 jobs - compared to figures released for the April to June period of 2009.

The most noticeable employment cuts were made in the industrial sector of the world's fourth largest economy at 3.4 per cent, while new jobs were actually generated in the services and agriculture industries.

Earlier this week, the German financial institution Bundesbank published its Monthly Bulletin, which suggested that the European Union member's labor market should remain robust in the near future.

The report claimed that state support measures and flexible labor market reforms had helped Germany weather the economic storm.