Kerameos: record 72.2% employment in Greece

Labour Minister Niki Kerameos stated that Greece’s employment rate reached 72.2%, calling it a record for the country, according to a report by newsit.gr. As the minister noted, unemployment has fallen from 17.3% in 2019 to 8.9% in 2026, while according to the figures she presented, approximately 600,000 new jobs have been created from 2019 to the present. The minister’s statements, as reported by newsit.gr, were made as part of a public intervention, though it is unclear exactly what the framework of the announcement was or the audience to whom she was addressing, and the report does not indicate whether clarifying questions followed from the media regarding the figures she presented.

According to the minister, the improvement in employment and unemployment indicators reflects the trajectory of the Greek labor market from 2019 onwards, a period to which she attributes the results to policies implemented during this time by the government. Ms. Kerameos did not provide, according to the report, detailed methodology of calculation beyond the overall figures she announced, while there was no reference to possible variations by sector, age group or region of the country. The record employment rate, as she characterized it, concerns according to her statements the highest percentage recorded to date in the country, though the time period used for comparison is not explicitly specified. Ms. Kerameos linked, according to the report, this improvement to broader goals of the government’s economic policy for the labor market.

Employment and unemployment rates in Greece are officially collected and published by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), which regularly issues press releases with relevant figures on a monthly and quarterly basis, with methodology harmonized with European statistical standards, so that the country’s figures are comparable with other EU member states. TodayGrid has recorded recent announcements from ELSTAT, such as 1.9% growth in the second quarter of 2026 and inflation at 3.8% in August 2026, however it does not have available a separate ELSTAT announcement specifically for the employment rate that the minister mentioned. This article therefore records Ms. Kerameos’s statement as reported, without being able to cross-check it with a separate ELSTAT press release on employment. This distinction, between what a government member states and what an independent statistical service independently confirms, remains critical for the completeness of public information.

The statements by the Labour Minister come at a time of increased public interest in the country’s economic figures, as well as measures worth €2.2 billion for 2027 that were announced in the context of Thessaloniki International Fair 2026. More employment data from ELSTAT is expected in the coming weeks, which may allow independent verification of the percentages presented by Ms. Kerameos. TodayGrid will monitor official announcements and will update accordingly, should newer statistical data become available from competent bodies regarding employment and unemployment in the country.