site.btaEmployment in Q4 of 2024 Up 0.3% in Bulgaria, 0.2% in EU, by 0.1% in Euro Area

The number of people employed in the fourth quarter of 2024 grew by 0.2% in the EU and by 0.1% in the euro area compared to the previous quarter, the latest Eurostat data show. In the third quarter of 2024, employment remained unchanged in the EU and increased by 0.2% in the euro area.

For the whole of 2024, the number of people in employment rises by 0.8% in the EU and by 1% in the euro area, compared with growth of 1.2% and 1.4% respectively in 2023.

Compared to the same quarter of the previous year in October-December 2024, the number of employees increases by 0.5% in the EU and by 0.7% in the euro area. In the third quarter, employment was up by 0.8 per cent in the EU and by 1 per cent in the euro area.

Hours worked increased by 0.5 per cent in the EU and by 0.6 per cent in the euro area in the fourth quarter compared to the previous quarter in 2024. On an annual basis, hours worked increased by 1% in the EU and by 1.6% in the euro area.

For the full year 2024, hours worked increase by 0.7% in the EU and by 1% in the euro area, compared to increases of 1% and 1.3% respectively in 2023.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, Romania (+2%), Spain (+0.9%), Greece and Portugal (+0.5%) register a larger increase in employment compared to the previous quarter. Employment declined the most in Croatia and Finland (-0.4% each), Latvia and Sweden (-0.2% in both countries). In Bulgaria, employment in the fourth quarter of 2024 grew by 0.3% on a quarter-on-quarter basis and by 1% relative to the last quarter of 2023, seasonally adjusted Eurostat data show.

In 2024, 219.7 million people will be employed in the EU, of whom 171.2 million in euro area countries.