A very positive effect of the economic upswing has been the substantial reduction in unemployment. 3.
…but not yet good With regard to the Euro area as a whole, however, a recent study has shown that the labour market is in worse shape than the official job figures suggest, with workers unlikely to see real increases in pay because of the level of underemployment.2 A measure of “slack” in the labour market indicates that about 15% to 18% of the euro area workforce are without jobs or would like to work more – which is nearly double the official unemployment rate.