Greece’s unemployment rate rose slightly to 9.0% in March 2025, an increase from 8.6% in February, according to the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT). Despite the month-on-month rise, the figure reflects a significant improvement from March 2024, when unemployment stood at 10.8%.

The number of employed individuals decreased from by 29,586 compared to February, totaling 4,280,078. This represents a 0.7% monthly decline but a 0.5% (or 22,835 people) increase compared to March 2024.

The labor force participation also shifted, with 3,053,322 people under 75 classified as being outside the labor market, up 1.5% (or 44,889 people) year-on-year.

Meanwhile, the total number of unemployed rose to 424,575, up by 20,940 from the previous month, but still down by 92,985 compared to the same period last year—a reduction of 18.0% year-on-year.

ELSTAT attributes part of the unemployment uptick to individuals previously outside the labor force who re-entered the job market seeking employment.

Notably, discrepancies remain between ELSTAT figures and the Public Employment Service (DYPA), which reported 926,041 registered unemployed in March—more than double ELSTAT’s count.

ELSTAT’s methodology accounts only for those actively seeking work or set to begin employment within three months.

To account for the persistent discrepancies in unemployment figures between the two agencies, ELSTAT claims that undeclared (or “black market”) labor is largely to blame. According to the agency, some individuals work off the books while registering as unemployed with DYPA in order to retain benefits.

ELSTAT also suggests that the DYPA registry may be outdated and may include individuals who are no longer unemployed, which could further explain the inflated numbers.