Archive:Employment statistics

Data from September 2008, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.

Graph 1: Employment rate, 2008(%)

Graph 2: Dispersion of regional employment rates (1)(coefficient of variation of employment rates (of the age group 15-64) across regions (NUTS 2 level))

European Union (EU) citizens have the right to work in any Member State without work permits. Although there are some temporary restrictions on workers from the countries which have joined the Union since 2004, this freedom of movement aims to help create a single market for jobs. This could potentially boost the economy while helping thousands of people achieve their career and lifestyle aspirations.

All EU citizens that move to work in another Member State must be treated as nationals in terms of employment rights that cover work-related issues like pay and dismissal. Nevertheless, job mobility within the EU remains relatively low, with only 2 % of the working-age population living and working in another Member State. As highlighted in the article below, employment rates vary considerably across regions, and are influenced by different levels of educational attainment.

Main statistical findings

Table 1: Employment rate(%)

Graph 3: Employment rate by gender, 2008 (1)(%)

Table 2: Employment rates for selected population groups(%)

Table 3: Total employment rate, by highest level of education, 2007(% of age group 25-64)

Graph 4: Employment rate by age group, 2007(%)

Graph 5: Annual employment growth(% change compared with previous year)

Table 4: Annual employment growth(% change compared with previous year),1997-2007

Table 5: People working part-time and people with a second job, 1997, 2002 and 2007 (% of total employment)

Graph 6: People employed part-time, 2007 (% of total employment)

Graph 7: Proportion of employees with a contract of limited duration, 2007(% of total employees)

The employment rate among the EU’s population aged 15 to 64 was 65.9 % in 2008. Although this represents a further rise since the relative low of 60.7 % recorded in 1997, it is still below the 70 % target set by the Lisbon European Council for 2010. Employment rates above 70 % were achieved in eight Member States (Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, the United Kingdom, Cyprus, Finland and Germany). In contrast, employment rates below 60 % were recorded in Romania, Italy, Hungary, Poland and Malta.

Employment rates within the Member States often varied considerably according to regional patterns, with a relatively high dispersion (16.3 %) observed across Italy (as measured by the coefficient of variation for regions at NUTS 2 level). In contrast, there was relatively little divergence in employment rates across the regions of Austria, Greece, Portugal, Sweden or the Netherlands (all below 4 %). The dispersion of regional employment across the whole of the EU was seen to be converging, as the coefficient of variation declined from 13.2 % to 11.1 % between 2002 and 2007.

The Lisbon Council set a target employment rate for women of 60 % across the EU. In 2008, the employment rate for women in the EU was 59.1 %. Although this figure exceeds the rate recorded in 2001 (54.3 %), it is considerably lower than the rate for men (72.8 %). Some 15 Member States recorded employment rates for women above the 60 % target in 2007, with Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands exceeding 70 %.

The Stockholm European Council of 2001 set a 50 % target employment rate for older workers (aged between 55 and 64) by 2010. The employment rate for older workers across the EU-27 was 45.6 % in 2008, much higher than the rate (40.0 %) recorded in 2001. The employment rate for older workers exceeded 50 % in 12 Member States. The highest rates were recorded in Sweden (70.1 %), which has no official retirement age.

Differences by educational attainment levels

There were considerable differences between employment rates, according to the level of educational attainment. The employment rate of those aged 25 to 64 who had completed tertiary education was 83.9 % across the EU-27 in 2008, much higher than the rate (48.1 %) for those who had only attained a low educational level (primary or lower secondary education).

The proportion of the workforce working part-time in the EU increased steadily from 15.9 % in 1998 to 18.2 % by 2008. The highest proportion of people working part-time was found in the Netherlands (47.3 % in 2008), followed by Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Denmark, where part-time work accounted in each case for about a quarter of those in employment. In contrast, part-time employment was relatively uncommon in Bulgaria (2.3 % of those in employment), Slovakia (2.7 %). A little less than one-third (31.1 %) of women employed in the EU-27 worked part-time in 2008, a much higher proportion than men (7.9 %). Three-quarters (75.3 %) of all women employed in the Netherlands worked on a part-time basis in 2008, by far the highest rate among the Member States .

More than one quarter of employees were employed on a temporary basis in 2008 in Spain and Poland, as were more than one fifth of the workforce in Portugal. There was a considerable range in the propensity to use limited duration contracts between Member States, that may, at least to some degrees, reflect national practices, the supply and demand of labour, and the ease with which employers can hire or fire. Among the remaining Member States, the proportion of employees working on a contract of limited duration ranged from 18.2% in the Netherlands, down to just 1.3 % in Romania.

Data sources and availability

Given the considerable post-Lisbon interest in labour market policies, the European Labour force survey (LFS) has grown in importance and has become a key tool for observing labour market developments.

The LFS is a quarterly household sample survey carried out in the EU Member States, candidate countries and EFTA countries (except Liechtenstein). It is the main source of information concerning the situation and trends within the EU labour market. The LFS primarily reports on the EU’s working-age population (15 years of age and more) - which is composed of persons in employment, unemployed persons and economically inactive persons.

It provides comprehensive information on these three categories, describing the employment situation of employed people by reporting on, for example, their education level; the branches in which they work; their occupations and their propensity to engage in part-time work; the duration of their work contracts; and their search for new jobs. Note that coverage in terms of labour force status is restricted to those aged 16 and over in Spain and the United Kingdom. In Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Hungary, Finland, Sweden (from 2001 onwards) and Norway, the coverage relates to those aged 15 to 74, while in Sweden (prior to 2001) and Iceland, coverage refers to those aged 16 to 74. The sample size amounts approximately to 1.5 million individuals each quarter, with quarterly sampling rates of between 0.2 % and 3.3 % in each country. Between 1998 and 2005, the survey underwent a transition towards a continuous quarterly survey. All EU Member States now provide quarterly results.

The economically active population (labour force) comprises employed and unemployed persons. Employment/activity rates represent employed/active persons as a percentage of same age total population.

Definition of employed persons

Employed people are defined as people aged 15 and over who during the reference week performed some work, even for just one hour per week, for pay, profit or family gain. It also includes people who were not at work but had a job or business from which they were temporarily absent because of, for example, illness, holidays, industrial dispute and education or training. Self-employed people work in their own business, farm or professional practice. A self-employed person is considered to be working if she/he meets one of the following criteria: works for the purpose of earning profit; spends time on the operation of a business; or is currently establishing a business. Employees are defined as those who work for a public or private employer and who receive compensation in the form of wages, salaries, payment by results or payment in kind; non-conscript members of the armed forces are also included.

Annual employment growth gives the change in percentage terms from one year to another of the total number of employed persons on the economic territory of the country or the geographical area.

Full-time versus part-time

A full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is declared by the respondent, except in Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands, where thresholds for usual hours worked are used. The indicator for employed persons with a second job refers to people with more than one job at the same time. People having changed job during the reference week are not counted as having two jobs.

A job is considered as temporary if employer and employee agree that its end is determined by objective conditions, such as a specific date, the completion of an assignment or return of the employee who was temporarily replaced. Typical cases include: people in seasonal employment; people engaged by an agency or employment exchange and hired to a third party to perform a specific task (unless there is a written work contract of unlimited duration); people with specific training contracts.

The dispersion of regional (NUTS level 2) employment rates shows regional differences in employment within countries and groups of countries (EU, euro area). It is zero when the employment rates in all regions are identical, and will rise if there is an increase in the differences between employment rates among regions. The indicator is not applicable for several countries as these comprise only one or a handful of NUTS level 2 regions. However, the employment rates of these countries are used to compute the indicator at a European level.

Context

Flexible working conditions – for example, part-time work or work from home – are thought to stimulate employment and activity rates, by encouraging more persons to enter the labour force. Other initiatives that may encourage a higher proportion of people to enter the labour market include improvements in the availability of childcare facilities, or providing opportunities for lifelong learning. Nevertheless, job mobility within the EU remains relatively low, as just 2 % of the working age population of the EU currently lives and works in another Member State.

Central to this theme is the issue of ’flexicurity’: policies that simultaneously address the flexibility of labour markets, work organization and labour relations, while taking into account the reconciliation of work and private life, employment security and social protection. It is often argued that if individuals and couples cannot achieve their desired work/family life balance, this affects not only their personal welfare but also economic development by reducing the labour supply. In this way, flexible working arrangements can be viewed as encouraging more people into work, while liberating individuals to decide whether to try to have a family or spend more time with children. In contrast, an inflexible labour market can actually lead to a reduction in birth rates, which has clear repercussions for future labour supply, as well as the knock-on effects regarding the financial sustainability of social protection systems.

Further Eurostat information

Publications

• Living conditions in Europe – Statistical pocketbook – Data 2002-2005
• The social situation in the European Union 2005-2006

Main tables

• Employment and unemployment (Labour Force Survey) (t_employ), see:

LFS main indicators (t_lfsi)

Employment - LFS adjusted series (t_lfsi_emp)

LFS series - Detailed annual survey results (t_lfsa)

Employment rate, by highest level of education attained (tsdec430)

Employed persons with a second job (tps00074)

Hours worked per week of full-time employment (tps00071)

Hours worked per week of part-time employment (tps00070)

Database

• Employment and unemployment (Labour Force Survey) (employ)

LFS main indicators (lfsi)

Employment - LFS adjusted series (lfsi_emp)

LFS series - Detailed quarterly survey results (from 1998) (lfsq) (Information on NACE Rev.2)

Activity and activity rates - LFS series (lfsq_act)

Employment - LFS series (lfsq_emp)

Employment rates - LFS series (lfsq_emprt)

Self employed - LFS series (lfsq_empself)

Employees - LFS series (lfsq_emppaid)

Temporary employment - LFS series (lfsq_emptemp)

Full-time and part-time employment - LFS series (lfsq_empftpt)

Population in employment having a second job - LFS series (lfsq_emp2job)

LFS series - Detailed annual survey results (lfsa) (Information on NACE Rev.2)

Activity and activity rates - LFS series (lfsa_act)

Employment - LFS series (lfsa_emp)

Employment rates - LFS series (lfsa_emprt)

Self employed - LFS series (lfsa_empself)

Employees - LFS series (lfsa_emppaid)

Temporary employment - LFS series (lfsa_emptemp)

Full-time and part-time employment - LFS series (lfsa_empftpt)

Population in employment having a second job - LFS series (lfsa_emp2job)

Population in employment working during asocial hours - LFS series (lfsa_empasoc)

Other information

• Labour Force Survey in the EU, Candidate and EFTA countries - Main characteristics of the national surveys - 2009 Edition

External links

OECD - Statistics Portal - Labour

See also

• Labour market introduced
• Unemployment statistics