02.01.2024

EUROSTAT: BULGARIA AND ROMANIA WITH THE LOWEST LEVELS OF VACANCIES IN THE EU

The European Union job vacancy rate was 2.6% in the third quarter of 2023, down from 2.7% in the previous three months and from 2.9% in the same period in 2022. This is shown by the data published by Eurostat.

In the period July-September 2023, the Member States with the lowest vacancy rate were Bulgaria and Romania (both with 0.8), Spain and Poland (both with 0.9%), Slovakia (1, 1%) and Ireland (1.2%), while the member states with the highest vacancy rates are Belgium (4.7%), the Netherlands (4.5%), Austria (4.2%) and Germany (4.1%).

In the Eurozone, the job vacancy rate was 2.9% in the third quarter of 2023, down from 3% in the previous three months and from 3.1% in the same period in 2022.

Compared to the third quarter of 2022, the level of job vacancies increased in five EU Member States: Cyprus (0.7 percentage points), Greece (0.5 percentage points), Croatia (0.4 percentage points ), Lithuania and Malta (both by 0.1 percentage points), remained stable in four and decreased in 18 EU member states.

The most serious decline is in the Czech Republic (minus one percentage point), Luxembourg (minus 0.9 percentage points), Denmark and Austria (both with minus 0.8 percentage points) and Finland (minus 0.7 percentage points).

By sector of activity, in Romania the vacancy rate was 0.8% in industry and construction, respectively 0.8% in services, in the third quarter of 2023. At the European Union level, the vacancy rate was 2, 3% in industry and construction, respectively 2.9% in services.