The unemployment rate in Greece continued its downward trend in November 2024, with the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) estimating that it decreased to 9.6% from 9.8% in October and 10.8% in November 2023. Employment increased by 3.5% on an annual basis.
Although all available data indicate that the end-of-year statistics will find the unemployment rate in single digits for the first time since 2009, the government is already working on the 2025 action plan, aiming to substantially increase employment, with the integration of women, young people and the elderly into the labor market.
According to Eurostat data for the third quarter of 2024, women and young people remain an open wound for the domestic market, with women’s participation in the workforce standing at 52.7%, i.e. 15.5 percentage points below the 68.2% of men, and youth participation reaching only 43.4%, lower than the 44.9% that had occurred a year earlier.
The number of employed people amounted to 4,286,466, recording an increase of 146,066 compared to November 2023 (3.5%) and a marginal decrease, by 6,074 persons, compared to October 2024 (-0.1%).
On the other hand the number of unemployed people recorded a significant improvement on an annual basis, as they amounted to 454,695 people, marking a decrease of 47,562 people compared to November 2023 (-9.5%) and of 11,914 people compared to October 2024 (-2.6%).