Euro area job vacancy rate at 2.1%

In the second quarter of 2026, the job vacancy rate in the euro area dropped to 2.1%, a decline from 2.3% in the first quarter of the same year and 2.2% in the previous quarter of 2025, according to Eurostat data. The EU's job vacancy rate during the same period was 2.0%, down from 2.1% in both the first and second quarters of 2025.

The euro area saw a 2.0% vacancy rate in industry and construction, while the services sector had a 2.2% vacancy rate. In the EU, industry and construction had a 1.8% vacancy rate, with services at 2.1%.

Among Member States, the Netherlands and Belgium had the highest job vacancy rates at 4.1% and 3.3%, respectively, while Romania and Poland saw the lowest rates of 0.5% and 0.8% each, with Spain and Slovakia tied at 0.9%.

Compared to the same period the previous year, job vacancy rates rose in 3 Member States (Slovenia, Greece, and Sweden), remained unchanged in 8, and decreased in 15. Slovenia, Greece, and Sweden saw increases of 0.3, 0.2, and 0.1 percentage points, respectively. Cyprus, Belgium, Austria, Estonia, and Italy experienced the most significant decreases, with Cyprus dropping by 0.7 percentage points and Belgium by 0.6 points.