The unemployment rate in the European Union reached 7.3% in December 2017, and 8.7% in the eurozone. This figure has been steadily declining since 2013. France, on the other hand, recorded an unemployment rate of 9.2%, making it one of the highest rates in the European Union.
European contrasts in unemployment are even more pronounced among the youth, with a difference ranging from a simple to a sevenfold between the extremes.
According to Eurostat, 17.961 million people were unemployed in the European Union in December 2017 (7.3% of the workforce), including 14.137 million in the eurozone (8.7%). Compared to December 2016, unemployment fell by 2.1 million people in the EU28 and by 1.5 million in the eurozone.
In terms of employment, contrasts in Europe are significant: a gap of nearly 20 points separates the extremes.
While the Czech Republic has an unemployment rate of 2.3%, Germany and Malta both have 3.6%, it peaks in Greece (20.7%) and Spain (16.4%). France, on the other hand, ranks in 6th position among the states most affected by unemployment (9.2%) and is just ahead of Finland (8.7%).
The peak of unemployment in the European Union was reached in early 2013, with a rate reaching 11% (12% for the eurozone).
