Employment and Social Developments Review: EU employment at all-time high

The latest Employment and Social Development in Europe (ESDE) Quarterly Review published today confirms that EU labour market figures continue to break records.

There are now 239 million people in employment in the EU, of which 158 million in the euro area. Both numbers are unparalleled, and employment has been growing for more than 5 years in a row.

Since the start of the current Commission mandate, almost 12 million jobs have been created. The monthly unemployment rates in the EU and euro area continued their decline, dropping to 6.9 % and 8.2 %, respectively, in July 2018. The decline has been particularly significant for youth unemployment, which is at its lowest level in 20 years. Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate decreased in all Member States. The financial situation of European households continued to improve overall, despite disparities.

Marianne Thyssen, Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, said: “Employment has never been as high as now in both the EU and the euro area and almost 12 million jobs have been created since the start of this Commission. Our efforts to invest in people's skills have been paying off, but it needs to remain a top priority so people are also prepared for tomorrow's labour market. We will now focus on making sure that the proposals we put on the table are adopted by the European Parliament and the Council. This is the only way to make our proposals aiming at creating a more social, prosperous European Union - such as those made in the framework of the European Pillar of Social Rights - a reality on the ground, to the benefit of citizens and businesses.”