France's unemployment rate reached its highest level since 2020 in the second quarter of 2026, according to data released by the French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE). The rate climbed to 8.3 percent, with the number of unemployed individuals rising to 2.7 million. This marks the highest level in nearly six years and reflects ongoing economic challenges faced by the country. Young people continue to bear the brunt of the situation, with youth unemployment reaching 21.6 percent, the highest since the start of the pandemic. The increase in unemployment comes amid sluggish economic growth over the past two years, exacerbated by high interest rates that have discouraged business investment and made companies more cautious about hiring new employees. Key sectors such as construction and manufacturing have cooled significantly, contributing to job losses. Additionally, labor market reforms aimed at encouraging active job searching among young people and recipients of social benefits have led to an increase in officially registered unemployment figures. According to INSEE, the inclusion of Mayotte, a French overseas department in the Indian Ocean, has had minimal impact on overall statistics. Despite this, the broader trend remains unchanged, indicating systemic issues within the French labor market. The unemployment rate is still lower than the peak recorded in mid-2015, however, by 2.2 percentage points. Youth unemployment saw the sharpest rise, increasing by 0.4 percentage points to 21.6 percent. For those aged 25 to 49, the unemployment rate hit 7.5 percent, the highest since early 2021. Among those aged 50 and older, the rate stood at 5.5 percent, the highest since the first quarter of 2022. The Labor Market Reform Act, which came into effect in January 2025, has contributed to the rise in unemployment. Recipients of social assistance and young people aged 15 to 29 account for almost half of the increase in the number of unemployed following the implementation of the reform. In addition to the officially registered unemployed, there are approximately 1.9 million people who want work but are not classified as unemployed because they are not actively seeking employment or are not immediately available for work. In Slovenia, the number of registered unemployed increased slightly in July compared to June, according to the Employment Agency of the Republic of Slovenia. At the end of July, there were 43,257 registered unemployed individuals, representing a 2.4 percent increase from June. However, this figure was still 1.2 percent lower than in July of the previous year. New registrations rose by 31.2 percent compared to June, although they were down by 4.8 percent compared to July of last year. Of the newly registered unemployed, the largest group consisted of those whose fixed-term contracts had ended, followed by surplus workers, job seekers starting their first job search, and those affected by bankruptcies. Compared to June, the number of new registrations due to the end of fixed-term contracts increased by 60.6 percent, while the number of surplus workers increased by 24.8 percent. The number of job seekers starting their first job search increased by 3.3 percent, whereas the number of those affected by bankruptcies decreased by 25 percent. Of the 4,286 unemployed individuals removed from the registry in July, 2,323 found employment or started self-employment, marking a decrease of 17.2 percent compared to June and 0.1 percent compared to July of last year. The majority of those who found jobs were salespeople, workers in simple manufacturing tasks, clerks, cleaners, service staff, and domestic helpers in offices, hotels, and other institutions, commercial representatives, warehouse workers, purchasing and sales officers, delivery drivers, taxi drivers, light goods vehicle drivers, and professionals in sales, advertising, and marketing. In the first seven months of the year, 34,439 new cases were registered, representing a 1.3 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. The largest group consisted of those whose fixed-term contracts had ended (14,752), followed by 2,661 first-time job seekers and 7,092 surplus workers and those affected by bankruptcies. Compared to the same period last year, the number of first-time job seekers decreased by 9.6 percent, surplus workers and those affected by bankruptcies decreased by 4.3 percent, and those whose fixed-term contracts had ended decreased by 2.5 percent. A total of 38,359 unemployed individuals were removed from the registry, of whom 24,959 found employment, a decrease of 2.8 percent compared to the same period in 2025. The number of registered unemployed increased in all regional offices of the Employment Agency compared to June. The largest increase was recorded in Nova Gorica (+6.4 percent), while the smallest was in Trbovlje (+0.8 percent). Increases were also noted in Krain (+3.6 percent), Novo Mesto (+3.3 percent), Koper (+3.1 percent), Celje (+3.0 percent), Velenje (+2.8 percent), and Ptuj (+2.6 percent). Smaller increases were also observed in Sevnica (+2.3 percent), Murska Sobota (+2.0 percent), Maribor (+2.0 percent), and Ljubljana (+1.5 percent). On a year-on-year basis, the number of unemployed decreased in Murska Sobota (-10.2 percent), Trbovlje (-7.7 percent), Celje (-7.0 percent), Ptuj (-6.3 percent), and Sevnica (-3.4 percent). The largest increase was recorded in Nova Gorica (+7.0 percent). Employers posted fewer job openings in July compared to June and the same period last year. Employers in education, manufacturing, healthcare, social services, and construction reported the fewest job openings, with the largest number being for simple manufacturing tasks and high-rise construction, cleaning staff, service personnel, and domestic helpers in offices, hotels, and other institutions, teachers, and purchasing and sales officers. In the first seven months of the year, the Employment Agency received 90,345 job postings, a 2.3 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. The latest data on the rate of registered unemployment is available for May, when the rate stood at 4.4 percent, 0.1 percentage point less than April and equal to May of last year. In June 2026, Slovenia recorded the lowest number of registered unemployed since 1990, according to the Employment Agency of the Republic of Slovenia. By the end of June, there were 42,245 registered unemployed individuals, a 1.9 percent decrease compared to May and a 0.4 percent decrease compared to the same month last year. New registrations increased by 1.7 percent compared to the previous month, but were 7.0 percent higher than in June of last year. A total of 2,804 unemployed individuals found employment, a decrease of 11.7 percent compared to May and 2.0 percent compared to June of last year. Over the period from January to June, the average number of unemployed individuals per month was 45,519, a 0.4 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. In the first half of the year, new registrations decreased by 0.6 percent, while the number of employed individuals decreased by 3.0 percent. Employers reported 76,342 job openings to the Employment Agency by the end of June, a 1.2 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. Employers in education, manufacturing, healthcare, social services, and construction reported the most job openings, with the largest numbers in the following occupational groups: workers in simple manufacturing tasks, cleaners, service staff, and domestic helpers in offices, hotels, and other institutions, primary school teachers, workers in high-rise construction, preschool educators and assistants, specialists in the care and education of persons with special needs, classroom teachers, teaching assistants, specialists in counseling and organizing educational activities, heavy truck drivers and trailers, and others.
Slovenia
