Greece continues to grapple with one of the EU’s highest levels of labor market slack, driven by high levels of employment among people actively looking for a job, according to 2023 figures released by Eurostat.
Labor market slack goes beyond traditional unemployment rates to paint a fuller picture of the job market, including those who are available for work but aren’t actively job-hunting and part-time workers who wish for additional hours.
Greece: High Labor Market Slack, High Unemployment, Widest Gender Gap in EU
According to Eurostat, Greece is in the 4th highest place for labor market slack, behind Spain, Italy and Sweeden, with a market slack rate of 16.3%.
The data shows that in Greece, unemployment makes up 65.8% of this slack—a rate significantly higher than the EU average of 48.7%- underscoring the country’s persistent difficulty in absorbing workers into suitable full-time roles.
Furthermore, just 14.6% of Greece’s slack comprises individuals ready to work but not actively seeking jobs, which is among the lowest in the EU and well below the EU average of 23%. Eurostat notes that this category of the labor market often cites a lack of suitable job opportunities as a deterrent.
Underemployment among part-time employees seeking additional hours is also a challenge for Greece, and reveals structural gaps in Greece’s job market. Eurostat notes that this is traditionally a bigger problem in western Europe than in eastern Europe.
Greece also has among the lowest levels of people seeking work but not available. The EU average is 7.5% and for Greece this figure is less than 4%. Some of the reasons for this category of workers that aren’t in the job market include education or training, care responsibilites and illness/disability.
Finally, Greece had the widest gender gap in the EU at 9.8%, reflecting greater labor market slack for women than for men. Meanwhile the EU average for the gender gap between men and women was just 3.6%.
Women are generally more likely to face an unmet supply of employment in the EU, notes Eurostat, with only Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Romania recording higher labor market slack for men than women.
