Labor market picture looks bleak
Unemployment in Greece stands at a rate of 27.5 percent when underemployment is included, according to a report by the Institute of the General Confederation of Greek Labor (INE-GSEE).
Using different parameters to the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), which put the jobless rate at 20.2 percent in the third quarter of 2017, INE-GSEE factored in the share of the workforce that feels it is not sufficiently employed to reach the 27.5 percent rate, which it said reflects the economy’s low growth rate.
The institute’s scientific director, Giorgos Argeitis, argued on Thursday that Greece remains in a state of unsustainable fiscal adjustment, with the instability set to continue as long as the policies of austerity and degradation of labor persist.
He added that the negative balance between disposable income and consumption – seen since 2012 and attributed to extensive tax evasion and the use of savings to fund consumption – undermines the economic stability of households and of the domestic credit system.
In the private sector, the report showed that net monthly salaries below 700 euros account for three out of eight employees (37.4 percent), against one in eight (13.1 percent) in 2009.
