Italy’s Employment Milestone

In February, Italy’s unemployment rate fell to 5.9%, the lowest since April 2007, when it was 5.8%. This is one of the most significant figures emerging from Istat’s monthly labor market monitoring. For 18 years, there hasn’t been such a low level of the active population seeking work (about 1.6 million units), although, as the Statistical Institute explains, the number of inactive individuals, those who do not have a job and continue not to seek one, remains high. The decrease in the unemployed is measured at 79,000 units compared to January 2025 and 342,000 units compared to February of last year. Employed individuals, on the other hand, rose to 24,332,000, and the growth compared to the previous month involves both the self-employed, who increased to 5,170,000, and temporary employees (2,710,000), while permanent employees (16,451,000) remain substantially stable. Female employment (+84,000 units compared to the previous month) increased more than male employment (-37,000 units). The annual increase also focuses on women, with 315,000 more employed compared to 252,000 more employed men. This is an important signal, although we are far from acceptable levels of women in the workforce, especially in the South. In general, the increase in employment (+0.2%, equal to +47,000 units) also concerns temporary employees, the self-employed, and all age groups except for 25-34-year-olds, for whom, as with men, the number of employed decreases. On an annual basis, the number of employed exceeds that of the same month in 2024 by 2.4% (+567,000 units): the increase involves men, women, 15-24-year-olds, and those aged at least 50, while a decrease is observed for 25-49-year-olds. The employment rate, in one year, rises by 1.1 points. There is a significant portion of the South in these percentages, although the data are not divided by macro-areas. The boost recorded in 2023 by the Mezzogiorno, which had shown employment growth above the national average and was confirmed last year, albeit with slightly lower intensity, certainly maintained its impact in the first months of the new year. This can be deduced from the increase in investments in the single Zes (440 in 2024 and over 140 in the first three months of 2025), many of which are already on the ground, including the hires they entail. But the good performance of key sectors for the southern economy, such as pharmaceuticals, construction, tourism, and agri-food, also suggests a dynamic labor market in a Pnrr dynamic, albeit significantly conditioned by the automotive slowdown. Naturally, the overall lag from the national average and the values of the northern regions remains, with Campania, for example, still far from 50% of the employed despite being the strongest region among the southern ones economically. According to many experts, this is the consequence of poor work, i.e., wage levels unable to fuel further growth of the system. ‘The February data,’ comments the Confcommercio Research Office, ‘is an encouraging signal on the possibility of improving economic performance driven by a recovery in consumption. The balance with the unfavorable March combination of inflation growth and reduction in consumer confidence remains uncertain. Overall, addressing uncertainty and fragility of the domestic and international framework with a high number of employed is a comforting feature of the Italian economic system.’