According to the report from Eurostat, the number of employed persons increased by 0.3% in the euro area and by 0.4% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with the previous quarter. In the third quarter of 2020, employment had increased by 1.0% in the euro area and by 0.9% in the EU.

For the year 2020 as a whole, employment decreased by 1.6% in the euro area and 1.5% in the EU, after +1.2% and +1.0% respectively in 2019.

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, employment decreased by 1.9% in the euro area and by 1.6% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2020, after -2.1% and -2.0% in the third quarter of 2020.

Hours worked decreased by 1.6% in the euro area and by 1.4% in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with the previous quarter. Compared with the same quarter of the previous year the declines were 5.6% in the euro area and 4.6% in the EU respectively (see annex table on employment in hours worked).

In the fourth quarter of 2020, Portugal, Estonia (both +1.9%) and Spain (+1.2%) recorded the highest growth of employment in persons compared with the previous quarter. The largest decreases were observed in Czechia, Croatia, Latvia and Malta (all -0.5%).

Based on seasonally adjusted figures, Eurostat estimates that in the fourth quarter of 2020, 206 million people were employed in the EU, of which 157.9 million were in the euro area. In relation to the COVID-19 pandemic, employment in persons was 3.1 million in the euro area and 3.5 million in the EU below the level of the fourth quarter of 2019.