The European Union’s labour market has reached historic milestones, with the employment rate hitting a record high and unemployment falling to its lowest level in over two decades, according to newly released data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
In the final quarter of 2024, the EU-wide employment rate climbed to 70.9%, the highest level recorded since the OECD began tracking the metric in 2005. The data, which covers individuals aged 15–64 and is seasonally adjusted, shows strong job growth across the bloc, with eight EU member states—alongside candidate country Turkey—also reporting their highest employment rates to date.
Germany, Czechia, Portugal, Slovakia, Belgium, Spain, Greece, and Turkey were among the countries breaking previous records, though several did so with only marginal gains. The Netherlands led among EU members with an employment rate of 82.3%, the only EU country to surpass the 80% threshold. Among non-EU European countries, Iceland topped the list with an 85.6% employment rate.
By comparison, Italy recorded the lowest employment rate within the EU at 62.2%, followed closely by Greece and Spain. Among Europe’s five largest economies, Germany was the strongest performer at 77.6%, ahead of the UK (75%), France (68.9%), Spain (66.3%), and Italy.
Greece and Iceland also saw the largest year-on-year employment gains, each with increases of over 1.5 percentage points, which the OECD attributed to stronger labour force participation.
On the unemployment front, the EU recorded a jobless rate of 5.7% in February 2025, the lowest since January 2000. The data, which also covers those aged 15–64, revealed wide disparities between member states. Poland had the lowest unemployment rate at 2.6%, while Spain remained the highest at 10.4%—the only country in the bloc to exceed the 10% mark.
Two Nordic countries, Finland (9.2%) and Sweden (8.9%), also reported elevated unemployment levels. Germany, by contrast, continued to perform strongly with a 3.5% unemployment rate, making it the best among the EU’s major economies. The UK stood at 4.4%, based on data from January 2025, while France and Italy reported jobless rates of 7.4% and 5.9% respectively—both above the EU average.
The figures highlight a continued post-pandemic recovery across much of Europe’s labour market, although persistent regional disparities remain a challenge for policymakers.
