The EU labor market is booming! Employment rate exceeds 75% in 2023, driven by COVID-19 recovery.

Women and young people are leading growth, but overqualification remains a problem in some countries.

The EU labor market continues to show a positive trend, with the employment rate reaching an all-time high of 75.5% in 2023, according to the latest figures from Eurostat. This means that more than 195 million people in the 20-64 age group are currently employed, representing a steady increase over the past three years following the drop caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Report Highlights:

• Employment rate at maximums: The EU employment rate reached 75.5% in the fourth quarter of 2023, exceeding 75% for the first time since records began in 2009.
• Constant recovery: This positive growth marks three consecutive years of labor market recovery after the 72% drop in 2020 due to the pandemic.
• Young people leading growth: The age group of 20 to 64 years is the one that contributes the most to the increase in employment, with an employment rate of 75%, the highest ever recorded.
• Differences between countries: Employment rates vary considerably between Member States. The Netherlands (84%), Sweden (83%) and Estonia (82%) lead the ranking, while Italy (66%), Greece (67%) and Romania (69%) are at the bottom.
• Gender overeducation: The overqualification rate in the EU is 22%, with women (23%) more likely than men (21%) to occupy jobs below their educational level.
• Spain and Greece lead overqualification: Among EU countries, Spain (36%) has the highest overqualification rate, followed by Greece (31%) and Cyprus (30%).
• Luxembourg and Central Europe with the least overqualification: Luxembourg (5%) has the lowest overqualification rate, followed by Denmark and the Czech Republic (both 13%).
• Gender gap in overqualification: In 18 EU countries, women have higher overqualification rates than men, with the most notable differences in Malta and Slovakia (both +8 percentage points) and Italy (+7 pp).
• Exceptions: However, in 9 EU countries, men have higher overqualification rates, with Lithuania (+5 pp), Latvia (+4 pp) and Bulgaria (+3 pp) recording the largest gaps.

Overall, EU labor market figures are positive and show a strong recovery after the pandemic. However, some disparities between countries and genders persist, indicating that there is still room for improvement in optimizing the European Union's labor potential.

For more information, consult Eurostat: