The employment rate in the European Union has reached its highest level since records began in 2009, according to recent data from the European statistical service.
The indicator showed an increase of 0.5 percentage points (p.p.) compared to 2023 and 1.2 p.p. compared to 2022.
Among the EU member states, the highest employment rates were recorded in the Netherlands (83.5%), Malta (83.0%), and the Czech Republic (82.3%).
Conversely, the lowest rates were observed in Italy (67.1%), Greece (69.3%), and Romania (69.5%).
In Portugal, the employment rate rose in 2024 to 78.5%, compared to 78.0% in 2023 and 77.1% in 2022.
Eurostat also reported that the overqualification rate in the EU was 21.3% in 2024, with 20.5% for men and 22.0% for women.
Overqualification occurs when individuals with higher education are employed in jobs that do not require such a high level of education.
The highest overqualification rates were in Spain (35.0%), followed by Greece (33.0%) and Cyprus (28.2%).
On the other end of the spectrum, Luxembourg (4.7%), Croatia (12.6%), and the Czech Republic (12.8%) recorded the lowest rates.
In Portugal, the overqualification rate was 116.0% in 2024, representing a decrease of 0.6 p.p. compared to the previous year.
