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©European Union: Change in employment rate of people aged 15-29, Q3 2021 compared with Q3 2019 (in percentage points)

The effects of COVID-19 on youth employment

An nuashonrú is déanaí an An Domhnach, 01/05/2022

Data from Eurostat shows that the employment rate of young people is most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In terms of employment, young people have been more strongly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic than older people. Eurostat compared the youth employment rates of the third quarters (July, August, September) from the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 in order to understand the effects of the pandemic on youth employment (aged 15-29). You can also see the results in the image above.

The employment rate in the EU among young people in 2020 was -2.8 percentage points (pp) compared to pre-pandemic 2019. However, 2021 saw a recovery, as the employment rate was -0.1 percentage points compared with 2019.

Comparing 2020 to 2019, all countries recorded a drop in their employment rates of young people. The largest decreases in youth employment even went beyond 5 percentage points in Lithuania, Portugal, Ireland and Spain. On the other hand, Hungary, Finland, France, Austria and Romania had a smaller decrease of youth employment rate, that is less than -2 percentage points.

In 2021, a majority of the EU Member States (16 out of 27) haven't fully recovered yet, as the employment rate for young people was still below the rate of 2019. The largest decreases were recorded in Portugal, Bulgaria, Latvia, Czechia and Poland (all at least -3 percentage points in Q3 2021 compared with Q3 2019). In contrast, the largest improvements of young people's employment rates compared with the pre-COVID situation were made in Ireland, France and Slovenia (all at least +2 percentage points in Q3 2021 compared with Q3 2019).

This data has been published on the occasion of 2022 being the European Year of Youth. Do you want to learn more about data on youth? Also check out the Dashboard for EU Youth Indicators!

 

If you want to know more about data on youth employment:

• Statistics Explained articles on Key figures on the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the labour market and Employment 

• Eurostat Statistics 4 beginners article on the labour market 

• Eurostat website section dedicated to the EU Labour Force Survey 

Eurostat database of the EU Labour Force Survey 

 

To contact Eurostat or for questions about using data, please visit the User Support page.

For press questions, please contact Media Support

 

 

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