Migrant integration statistics - regional labour market indicators

Data extracted: August 2023.

Planned article update: 31 May 2024.

Highlights

Activity rates for citizens of other EU Member States were higher than those for nationals in a majority of the EU's regions in 2022.

Across the EU, the highest regional employment rate in 2022 for non-EU citizens was 93.6 % in Jihovýchod (Czechia); the highest employment rate for citizens of the other EU Member States (92.2 %) was in Friesland (the Netherlands).

In nine-tenths of the regions in the EU, the unemployment rate in 2022 was higher for citizens of the other EU Member States than for nationals.

This article presents regional European Union (EU) statistics for three labour market indicators: the activity rate, employment rate and unemployment rate. These indicators are mainly analysed according to individuals' citizenship: information is presented for two categories of foreign citizens (citizens of other EU Member States and non-EU citizens) compared with nationals. Eurostat also publishes data by country of birth, which are also presented in this article. This article forms part of an online publication on migrant integration statistics.

The information presented here for regional labour market indicators supplements a more general article that provides a range of national migrant integration statistics concerning labour market indicators. The present article goes into more detail by analysing statistics for NUTS regions.

The labour force survey (EU-LFS) is the source of data for this article. The focus of this article is the age group 20–64 years. This age group is of particular interest as it is the focus for employment analyses in the Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion 2021–2027.

Full article

Activity rate

Labour market participation can be measured through the activity rate. The activity rate is the proportion of people in the labour force (employed or unemployed) as a percentage of the total population.

Figure 1: Range of regional activity rates, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)

Figure 1 shows the range in regional activity rates for three categories of citizenship. In 2022, these regional data were available for 17 EU Member States as well as Norway and Switzerland.

In 13 of the EU countries, the range was narrowest for the regional activity rates of nationals. The four exceptions were Italy, Portugal, Lithuania and Slovenia (where the range was narrower for non-EU citizens).
In five of the EU Member States, the range was widest for citizens of other EU Member States: Greece, Italy, Finland, Portugal and Slovenia. In the remaining 11 EU Member States, the range was widest for non-EU citizens.
In 16 EU Member States, the highest regional activity rate for citizens of other EU Member States was above the highest regional activity rate for nationals. By contrast, for non-EU citizens a similar situation was observed in six EU Member States; among the 11 where the highest rate was lower for non-EU citizens than for nationals, the largest difference (12.9 percentage points (pp)) was in the Netherlands.
The lowest regional activity rates tended to be among foreign citizens. The lowest rates among citizens of other EU Member States were below the lowest regional rates for nationals in nine of the EU Member States; the lowest regional rates among non-EU citizens were lower than among nationals in 13 Member States.

Maps 1 and 2 are based on the same data as Figure 1 but, instead of showing the actual shares, show for the two foreign citizenship categories the difference between their shares and the shares for nationals. As such, the maps show gaps, in Map 1 for citizens of other EU Member States and in Map 2 for non-EU citizens.

Map 1: Difference between the activity rates for citizens of other EU Member States and the activity rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)
Map 2: Difference between the activity rates for non-EU citizens and the activity rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)

Overall, non-EU citizens were less likely to form part of the EU labour force than nationals and citizens of other EU Member States.

In almost two-thirds of the regions shown in Map 1, for which the data are available and reliable (91 of 142), the activity rate in 2022 was higher for citizens of the other EU Member States than for nationals. The largest gap with a higher rate for citizens of other EU Member States was in the Belgian region of Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest, where the rate for nationals was 11.0 pp lower than for citizens of other EU Member States. Niederbayern in Germany and Comunidad de Madrid in Spain were the regions with no difference between the rates for citizens of other EU Member States and for nationals, and so there were 49 regions where the activity rate was lower for citizens of other Member States than for nationals.

In almost one-fifth of the regions shown in Map 2, for which the data are available and reliable (32 of 170), the activity rate in 2022 was higher for non-EU citizens than for nationals. The largest gap with higher rates for non-EU citizens was in Jihovýchod in Czechia. There were 138 regions where the activity rate was lower for non-EU citizens than for nationals. In fact, in more than half of regions the rate for non-EU citizens was more than 10.0 pp lower than for nationals; the largest gaps with lower activity rates for non-EU citizens were in the French region of Guyane and the Dutch region of Friesland.

Figure 2 presents the activity rates in 2022 for nationals (horizontal axis) by plotting them against the equivalent rate for each of the two categories of foreign citizens (vertical axis). Looking at Figure 2, one can see where each region is positioned according to the levels of nationals versus citizens of other EU countries (dark blue plots) and nationals versus non-EU citizens (brown plots). Plots to the left and above the dark blue diagonal line indicate regions where the activity rate is lower for nationals, whereas plots to the right and below the dark blue line indicate regions where the activity rate is higher for nationals.

For citizens of other EU Member States (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with dark blue plots), many of the plots are quite close to the dark blue line. This implies that the rates for these two categories of citizenship are broadly similar, with only a few exceptions.
For non-EU citizens (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with brown plots), the plots are more widely dispersed, indicating that some regions had larger gaps. Furthermore, a large majority of these plots are to the right and below of the dark blue line, indicating a lower activity rate for non-EU citizens, confirming what was observed in Map 2.

Figure 2: Activity rate, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship and NUTS 2 regions of EU Member States and EFTA countries, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)

Figure 3 compares the activity rates in 2022 for foreign citizens with the equivalent rates for foreign-born people. As for foreign citizens, a distinction is made between persons born in other EU Member States and persons born in non-EU countries.

Both sets of plots have many plots quite close to the dark blue diagonal line. This implies that the rates in 2022 were similar when analysed by citizenship or by country of birth.
The plots comparing non-EU citizens with persons born in non-EU countries (shown with brown plots) are somewhat more dispersed, particularly for regions with low activity rates. In these regions, the activity rates tend to be higher for people born in non-EU countries than for non-EU citizens.
Confirming what has been observed in earlier figures and maps, the main concentration of plots comparing non-EU citizens with persons born in non-EU countries (shown with brown plots) reflects lower rates than the main concentration of plots comparing citizens of other EU Member States with persons born in other EU Member States (shown with dark blue plots).

Figure 3: Activity rate, persons aged 20–64 years, foreign citizens and foreign-born persons, by NUTS 2 regions of EU Member States and EFTA countries, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn) and (lfst_r_lfp2actrc)

Maps 3 and 4 return the focus to an analysis by citizenship and look at non-EU citizens and the gaps (in percentage points) for each sex, calculated as the activity rate for non-EU citizens minus the activity rate for nationals.

Map 3: Difference between the activity rates for female non-EU citizens and the activity rates for female nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)
Map 4: Difference between the activity rates for male non-EU citizens and the activity rates for male nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfp2actrtn)

The maps show that the differences between the rates controlled by sex were wider for female non-EU citizens.

In nine out of ten of the regions shown in Map 3, for which the data are available and reliable (113 of 127), the activity rate in 2022 was lower for female non-EU citizens than for female nationals. The largest gaps over 40.0 pp were observed in the German region Arnsberg and Prov. Vlaams-Brabant in Belgium. In the remaining 14 regions the activity rate was higher for female non-EU citizens than for female nationals.

In 68 of the 152 regions with reliable data shown in Map 4, the activity rate in 2022 was higher for male non-EU citizens than for male nationals; the largest gaps with higher rates for male non-EU citizens were in Italian region of Sardegna and Luxembourg.

There were 84 regions where the activity rate was lower for male non-EU citizens than for male nationals. In fact, in most regions the activity rate for male non-EU citizens was less than 10.0 pp lower than for male nationals. The largest gap with lower activity rates for male non-EU citizens was in French region of Guyane. For regions recording a negative gap for the activity rate for female non-EU citizens, the equivalent gap for males was generally less negative or in fact positive; the only exceptions were Hungary (national data), Dutch region of Limburg and Austrian region of Kärnten. By contrast, in the four regions (Extremadura in Spain, Peloponnisos in Greece, Campania in Italy, and Malta) recording a positive gap for the activity rate for females the equivalent gap for males was smaller.

Employment rate

The employment rate is the number of employed persons (for example, someone working as an employee, self-employed or working unpaid for a family enterprise) as a percentage of the total population.

Figure 4: Range of regional employment rates, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)

Figure 4 shows the range in regional employment rates in 2022 for three categories of citizenship, available for 15 EU Member States as well as Norway and Switzerland.

In 12 of the EU Member States, the range was narrowest for the regional employment rates of nationals. The exceptions were Italy, Portugal and Slovenia where the range was narrower for non-EU citizens.
In seven of the EU Member States, the range was widest for non-EU citizens: Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Czechia and Ireland. In the remaining eight EU Member States, the range was widest for citizens of other Member States.
In 14 of the EU Member States, the highest regional employment rate for citizens of other EU Member States was above the highest regional employment rate for nationals; the exception was Greece. However, only in Czechia the highest regional employment rate for non-EU citizens was above the highest regional employment rate for nationals.
The lowest regional employment rates tended to be among foreign citizens. The lowest regional rates among citizens of other EU Member States were below the lowest regional rates for nationals in 11 of the Member States; the lowest regional rates among non-EU citizens were lower than among nationals in all Member States except for Italy.

Maps 5 and 6 show for the two foreign citizenship categories the difference between their shares and the shares for nationals. As such, the maps show gaps, in Map 5 for citizens of other EU Member States and in Map 6 for non-EU citizens.

Map 5: Difference between the employment rates for citizens of other EU Member States and the employment rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)
Map 6: Difference between the employment rates for non-EU citizens and the employment rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)

Overall, non-EU citizens were less likely to be employed than nationals and citizens of other EU Member States.

In over two-fifths of the regions shown in Map 5, for which the data are available and reliable (65 of 141), the employment rate in 2022 was higher for citizens of the other EU Member States than for nationals; the largest gap with a higher rate for citizens of other EU Member States was in Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest, where the rate for nationals was 14.3 pp lower than for citizens of other EU Member States. Across the remaining 76 regions where the employment rate was lower for citizens of other EU Member States than for nationals; the largest gap with a lower rate for citizens of other EU Member States was in the Greek region of Kentriki Ellada (NUTS1 level), where the rate for nationals was 27.4 pp higher than for citizens of other EU Member States.

In one-tenth of the regions with reliable data shown in Map 6 (18 of 160), the employment rate in 2022 was higher for non-EU citizens than for nationals; the largest gap with higher rate for non-EU citizens was observed for Jihovýchod in Czechia. There were 142 regions where the employment rate was lower for non-EU citizens than for nationals. In fact, in the vast majority of regions (102 regions) the rate for non-EU citizens was more than 10.0 pp lower than for nationals. The largest gap with lower employment rates for non-EU citizens compared with nationals was in the French region of Guyane.

Figure 5 presents the employment rates in 2022 for nationals (horizontal axis) by plotting them against the equivalent rate for each of the two categories of foreign citizens (vertical axis). Plots to the left and above the dark blue diagonal line indicate regions where the employment rate is lower for nationals, whereas plots to the right and below the dark blue line indicate regions where the employment rate is higher for nationals.

For citizens of other EU Member States (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with dark blue plots), many of the plots are quite close to the dark blue line. This implies that the rates for these two categories of citizenship are broadly similar, with only a few notable exceptions.
For non-EU citizens (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with brown plots), the plots are more widely dispersed, indicating that most regions had larger gaps. Furthermore, a large majority of these plots are to the right and below of the dark blue line, indicating a lower employment rate for non-EU citizens in many regions, confirming what was observed in Map 6.

Figure 5: Employment rate, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship and NUTS 2 regions of EU Member States and EFTA countries, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)

Maps 7 and 8 return the focus to an analysis by citizenship and look at non-EU citizens and the gaps (in percentage points) for each sex, calculated as the employment rate for non-EU citizens minus the employment rate for nationals.

Map 7: Difference between the employment rates for female non-EU citizens and the employment rates for female nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)
Map 8: Difference between the employment rates for male non-EU citizens and the employment rates for male nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfe2emprtn)

The maps show that the differences between the rates controlled by sex were wider for female non-EU citizens.

In almost all the regions (99 of 106 with reliable data) in the EU for which data are shown in Map 7, the employment rate in 2022 was lower for female non-EU citizens than for female nationals. The largest gaps over 40.0 pp were observed in the Dutch region of Gelderland, French region of Guyane and Arnsberg in Germany. In the remaining seven regions the employment rate was higher for female non-EU citizens than for female nationals.

In seven out of ten regions (88 of 124 with reliable data) shown in Map 8, the employment rate in 2022 was lower for male non-EU citizens than for male nationals; the largest gaps over 30.0 pp were in French regions of Pays-de-la-Loire and Guyane. There were 35 regions where the employment rate was higher for male non-EU citizens than for male nationals. The largest gap with higher employment rate for male non-EU citizens was in Slovenian region of Vzhodna Slovenija. In the Greek region of Voreia Ellada (NUTS1 level) the rates were identical.

For regions recording a negative gap for the activity rate for female non-EU citizens, the equivalent gap for males was generally less negative or in fact positive. Exceptionally, in the Czech region Jihovýchod, Finnish region Pohjois- ja Itä-Suomi and Malta recording a positive gap for the employment rate for females the equivalent gap for males was smaller.

Unemployment rate

The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed persons as a percentage of the labour force.

Figure 6: Range of regional unemployment rates, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfur2gan)

Figure 6 shows the range in regional unemployment rates in 2022 for three categories of citizenship, available for seven EU Member States as well as Switzerland.

In three of the Member States – Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands – the range was narrowest for the regional unemployment rates of nationals. In Greece, Sweden and Austria, the range was narrowest for citizens of other EU Member States. In Italy, the range was narrowest for non-EU citizens.
In five of the seven EU Member States, the range was widest for non-EU citizens: Greece, Sweden, Belgium, Austria and the Netherlands. In Italy and Spain, the range was widest for citizens of other EU Member States.
In all EU Member States, the highest regional unemployment rates for citizens of other EU Member States and the highest regional unemployment rates for non-EU citizens were above the highest regional unemployment rate for nationals.
The lowest regional unemployment rates were recorded among nationals. The lowest regional rates among citizens of other EU Member States were above the lowest regional rates for nationals in six Member States; whereas, the lowest regional rates among non-EU citizen were above the lowest regional rates for nationals in all seven Member States.

Maps 9 and 10 presented below, instead of showing the actual shares of the unemployed, show for the two foreign citizenship categories the difference between the unemployment rates in comparison with the regional unemployment rate of nationals. As such, the maps show the gaps between the nationals and the citizens of other EU Member States (Map 9) and non-EU citizens (Map 10) in relation to unemployment.

In approximately nine-tenths of the regions in the EU for which data are shown in Map 9 (24 of 60 with reliable data), the unemployment rate in 2022 was higher for citizens of the other EU Member States than for nationals. The largest gap was in Greece (national data), where the rate for nationals was 14.8 pp lower than for citizens of other EU Member States. There were six regions where the unemployment rate was lower for citizens of other EU Member States than for nationals: Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest (Belgium, NUTS1 level), Canarias (Spain), Cyprus, West-Nederland (the Netherlands, NUTS1 level), Isole (Italy, NUTS1 level) and Luxembourg.

In 56 of the 57 regions shown in Map 10, for which data are available and reliable), the unemployment rate in 2022 was higher for non-EU citizens than for nationals. In 48 of these regions, the gap was at least 5.0 pp. The widest gaps were among the Spanish, Swedish and French regions. The one region where a negative gap was recorded was Sicilia (Italy), where the unemployment rate was 15.8 % for non-EU citizens and 16.5 % for nationals, a gap of 0.7 pp.

Map 9: Difference between the unemployment rates for citizens of other EU Member States and the unemployment rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfur2gan)
Map 10: Difference between the unemployment rates for non-EU citizens and the unemployment rates for nationals, persons aged 20–64 years, by NUTS 2 regions, 2022
(pp)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfur2gan)

Figure 7 plots unemployment rates in 2022 for nationals (horizontal axis) against the equivalent rate for each of the two categories of foreign citizens (vertical axis). Plots to the left and above the dark blue diagonal line indicate regions where the unemployment rate is lower for nationals, whereas plots to the right and below the dark blue line indicate regions where the unemployment rate is higher for nationals.

The plots for citizens of other EU Member States (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with dark blue plots) are generally closer to the dark blue line than the plots for non-EU citizens (whose rates compared with the rates for nationals are shown with brown plots). This implies that the gap is narrower for citizens of other EU Member States than for non-EU citizens.
The unemployment rate was lower for nationals than for both of the categories of foreign citizenship in nearly all regions, with only a few exceptions as noted earlier.

Figure 7: Unemployment rate, persons aged 20–64 years, by citizenship and NUTS 2 regions of EU Member States and EFTA countries, 2022
(%)
Source: Eurostat (lfst_r_lfur2gan)

Source data for tables and graphs

Migrant integration statistics – regional labour market indicators: figures and maps

Rates and gaps with low reliability are marked in this file with a letter 'u'.

Data sources

The data presented in this article are from the EU labour force survey (EU-LFS), the largest European household sample survey. The survey covers the resident population, defined as all people usually residing in private households. Usual residence means the place where a person normally spends the daily period of rest, regardless of temporary absences for purposes of recreation, holidays, visits to friends and relatives, business, medical treatment or religious pilgrimage. The data for the EU are aggregated results for the 27 EU Member States. For more information on the data sources used, please consult the online publication EU labour force survey.

The labour force survey only covers private households. As such, persons living in collective households are excluded from the target population. Due to the sampling nature of the survey, some data have low reliability or are not published due to very low reliability or confidentiality. Rates and gaps with low reliability are marked with a letter 'u' in the Excel file under the heading Source data for tables and graphs. The data quality table can be consulted here.

The regional statistics presented in this article generally refer to NUTS level 2 regions.

Due to the lack of data with sufficient reliability for some regions of some EU Member States, more aggregated geographical information has been included in some maps and figures, for example NUTS level 1 data or national data. This approach serves to improve data coverage but has an impact on the analysis and statistical findings provided. All of the cases where particular regions are presented using a level of NUTS that is different from the standard one are documented in the footnotes for each map or figure.
It should also be noted that some EU Member States have a relatively small population and may therefore not be subdivided at some (or even all) of the different levels of the NUTS classification. For example, five of the EU Member States — Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg and Malta — are each composed of a single NUTS level 2 region according to the 2022 version of the NUTS classification.

Country notes

Spain and France have assessed the attachment to the job and included in employment those who, in their reference week, had an unknown duration of absence but expected to return to the same job once health measures allow it.

Main concepts

The economically active population is also referred to as the labour force. It comprises employed and unemployed persons.

An employed person is someone aged 15–89 years who, during the reference week of the labour force survey, performed work – even if just for one hour a week – for pay, profit or family gain. Also included are people who were not at work but had a job or business from which they were temporarily absent (for example, due to illness, holiday, industrial dispute or education and training).
An unemployed person is defined by Eurostat, according to the guidelines of the International Labour Organization, as someone:
- aged 15–74 years,
- not employed during the reference week according to the definition of employment,
- currently available for work,
- actively seeking work or found a job to start within a period of at most three months.

Calculation of key rates:

the activity rate is the number of economically active persons as a percentage of the total population,
the employment rate is the number of employed persons as a percentage of the total population,
the unemployment rate is the number of unemployed persons as a percentage of the labour force.

Context

In November 2020, an Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion 2021–2027 (COM(2016) 377 final) was adopted with the purpose of fostering social cohesion and building inclusive societies for all. Inclusion for all is about ensuring that all policies are accessible to and work for everyone, including migrants and EU citizens with migrant background. This plan includes actions in four sectoral areas (education and training, employment and skills, health and housing) as well as actions supporting effective integration and inclusion in all sectoral areas at the EU, Member State and regional level, with a specific attention paid to young people.

More information on the policies and legislation in force in this area can be found in an introductory article on migrant integration statistics.