Greece’s youth unemployment falls below EU average for first time on record

In a historic milestone for the Greek labor market, youth unemployment in Greece fell below the European Union average for the first time since data collection began in 2000, according to newly released figures from ELSTAT and Eurostat.

The unemployment rate among young people aged 15–24 dropped to 13% in December 2025, significantly lower than the EU average of 14.7%. The figure marks a dramatic 9.3 percentage point decrease compared to December 2024, underscoring the rapid acceleration in youth employment over the past year.

A 26-Year First

A deeper review of statistical time series confirms that this is the first time in 26 years that Greece has outperformed the EU-27 average in youth unemployment.

The achievement is particularly notable considering that during the peak of Greece’s sovereign debt crisis, the unemployment gap between Greece and the EU widened to as much as 37.5 percentage points.

From 62.5% to 13%: Greece’s Youth Employment Comeback

Greece recorded its highest youth unemployment rate in May 2013, when it reached a staggering 62.5%, compared to 25% across the EU at the time. The rate remained above 40% until mid-2018, with Greece consistently ranking last or second-to-last among EU member states, often alongside Spain.

By the summer of 2019, youth unemployment had improved but was still hovering between 37% and 38%. The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily stalled progress, freezing economic activity.

However, from late 2022 onward—following the gradual normalization of post-pandemic economic conditions—the downward trajectory resumed. By 2024, the youth unemployment rate fell below the critical 20% threshold, and momentum intensified throughout 2025. In the final three months of the year alone, the rate declined by nearly eight percentage points.

Despite seasonal labor market fluctuations, analysts describe the decline as deep, structural, and sustained.

64,900 New Young Employees Since 2019

Data from Greece’s ERGANI employment information system further reinforces the trend. Between 2019 and 2025:

• Private-sector employees aged up to 24 increased by 64,900 individuals. 
• A total of 563,000 new private-sector jobs were created.
• Approximately 11.5% of all new hires during that period were young workers.

Policy Drivers Behind the Decline

Labor market experts attribute the improvement to a combination of macroeconomic recovery and targeted structural reforms.

Key contributing factors include:

• A cumulative 5.4 percentage point reduction in social security contributions since 2019.
• Broad implementation of the Digital Work Card, which formally records working hours and reduces undeclared (“black”) overtime—particularly relevant for young workers who are often more vulnerable to exploitative labor practices.
• Tax relief measures announced at the Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF), especially favorable for employees under 25, effectively guaranteeing zero income tax for earnings up to €20,000.

Senior executives in the retail sector have highlighted the speed of the recovery, noting that labor market “scars” typically take much longer to heal after deep crises.

Greece Surpasses Spain

The scale of Greece’s improvement becomes even clearer when compared to Spain. While both countries struggled with elevated youth unemployment during the debt crisis years, Greece has decisively pulled ahead since 2023.

In December 2025, Spain’s youth unemployment rate stood at 23.4%—more than ten percentage points higher than Greece’s.

A Structural Turning Point?

The sustained decline signals a potential structural shift in Greece’s labor market dynamics. With investment-driven growth, fiscal reforms, and digital oversight mechanisms now embedded in the employment framework, analysts suggest that Greece may have moved beyond the era when youth unemployment defined its economic narrative.

Whether this convergence with the EU average can be maintained will depend on continued investment, productivity gains, and labor market resilience in a changing European economic environment.