It should be noted that during the second quarter, the labour market was affected by specific regulatory measures concerning the operation of businesses, as well as by measures taken to protect public health and tackle the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the whole Country.
These measures affected, not only the normal functioning of the market, but also the data collection method of the survey.
More specifically, during the 2nd quarter of 2021:
- The number of persons employed amounted to 3,915,253, recording an increase by 8.0 % compared to the previous quarter and by 1.9 % compared to the same quarter of the previous year. It is worth noting that, on the basis of Eurostat guidelines on the Labour Force Survey in the Member States, due to the coronavirus-2019 pandemic (COVID-19), persons who are subject to a suspension of their contract are still considered to be employed, if the suspension period is less than 3 months.
- The number of unemployed persons amounted to 732,544, recording a decrease by 1,7 % compared to the previous quarter and by 4,7% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. The unemployment rate for the second quarter of 2021 was 15.8%. The unemployment rate in the previous quarter (2021Q1) was 17.1% and in the corresponding quarter of the previous year (2020Q2) was 16.7 %.
- The number of persons outside the labour force, i.e., the persons who are neither working nor looking for a job, amounted to 4,419,295. In particular, persons outside the labour force under the age of 75, amounted to 3,223,089. Their share decreased by 8.1 % compared with the previous quarter and by 2.0 % compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
In the 2nd quarter of 2021, the majority of the employed are working as employees (67.9%), while a significant share is working as self-employed without employees (21.1%).
Compared to the previous quarter, there is an increase in all categories of employed. Compared to the previous year, there is a decrease only for family workers (-2.7%).
Part-time employment amounts to 8.2%, while the share of persons with temporary jobs is 7.0%. Part-time employment has increased by 12.9% in comparison with the previous quarter and decreased by 10.1% compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Temporary jobs have increased compared to the previous quarter (24.0%) and to the corresponding quarter of the previous year (5.7%).
The majority of the unemployed (61.0%) are seeking a job for one year or more (long-term unemployed).
60.7% of the unemployed have completed up to secondary education. 22.0% of the unemployed report that they are not registered at the public employment office (OAED), while 11.2% report that they receive a benefit or assistance from the public employment office.
