Employment and unemployment (provisional estimates) - March 2025

In March 2025 the number of employed and inactive people decreased, while unemployed people increased.

On a monthly basis, employment fell (-0.1%, -16 thousand) for women and people aged 15-34, while it rose for men and people aged 35 and over. Overall, the employment rate remained unchanged at 63.0%.

In the last month, the growth in the number of unemployed persons (+2.1%, +32 thousand) affected men and people under 50, while unemployment declined for women and those aged 50 and over. The unemployment rate rose to 6.0% (+0.1 p.p.), as well as the youth rate, up to 19.0% (+1.6 p.p.).

In March, the number of inactive people decreased (-0.1%, -11 thousand) for men and those aged 35-49, while it increased for women and other age groups, except for those aged 15-24, for whom inactivity was stable. The inactivity rate remained unchanged at 32.9%.

In the first 2025 quarter (January-March 2025), with respect to the previous one (October-December 2024), employment increased (+0.9%, +224 thousand).

On a quarterly basis, a growth was registered in the number of unemployed persons (+0.5%, +7 thousand) while the number of inactive people aged 15-64 years decreased (-1.7%, -217 thousand).

Compared with March 2024, the number of employed persons increased by 1.9% (+450 thousand); the growth affected both sexes and those aged 35 and over, while employment decreased for people aged    15-34. Over the year, the employment rate showed an increase of 0.9 p.p..

On a yearly basis, the rise of employed people was accompanied by a decrease of unemployed persons (-11.8%, -208 thousand) and of the inactive people aged 15-64 (-0.9%, -107 thousand).