Employment challenges in Georgia—much like in many countries—remain persistent despite recent improvements. According to the latest data released by the National Statistics Office of Georgia, the unemployment rate has decreased when compared to the indicators of the past five years.
The agency recently published the labour force statistics for the third quarter of 2025, which can be viewed in full here.

Employment and Unemployment: Georgia, Q3 2025

Creating new jobs may address part of the employment challenge, but the core problem does not end there.
In reality, the difficulties begin much earlier—at the job search stage.

For individuals without influential connections, job hunting typically happens through online platforms and publicly posted vacancies. As a representative of HR.ge—one of Georgia’s largest employment platforms—told Fortuna, around 200 job postings appear on their website every day, most of them concentrated in the sales sector.

The Rise of Network Marketing

“Fortuna’s” interviewees, Megi and Sandro, both rely on online job sites when searching for employment. Their first instinct, however, is to avoid sales-related vacancies, because their personal experience has taught them that many of these “opportunities” lead directly to network marketing schemes.

“The same company posts vacancies using different job descriptions at different times. When a posting lacks clearly defined responsibilities, hides the company name, offers bonuses from sales, promises ‘career growth,’ and targets inexperienced students, I no longer pay attention. I’ve repeatedly ended up at the same interview under different pretexts,”
— Sandro told Fortuna.

According to him, such employers effectively turn recruits into door-to-door salespeople, offering negligible compensation.

“I’ve been trying to stay employed since I was 17. Because of that, I’ve worked in many places and had countless supervisors. I’ve also come across scammers and fraudsters. For example, there are numerous network-based companies that promise office jobs and fixed salaries, but in reality they turn people into street vendors,”
— Sandro added.

Salaries and Unrealistic Requirements

Beyond network marketing, job seekers frequently encounter low salaries, disproportionate qualification demands, and misleading job descriptions.

Megi—who holds a university degree and has extensive professional experience—told Fortuna that the biggest obstacle is often the lack of appropriate compensation.

“With rare exceptions, salaries are low everywhere. Positions require full-time workload and demand qualifications that are entirely disproportionate to the pay.

Many listings on job sites are disguised. For example, a company may need a sales manager but advertises the position as a call-center operator without indicating the full range of responsibilities. They could simply write ‘Call-Center Sales Manager’ and list the duties clearly.

Often the salary isn’t indicated at all, and once you arrive for the interview, they offer a low amount or ask you how much you expect—without telling you what the company has budgeted for the position. I don’t know why they assume that 300 or 500 GEL might be a ‘desired’ salary for someone,”
— Megi said.

Another challenge is the behaviour of HR personnel, many of whom lack proper training.

“Some HRs are inexperienced and don’t know how to conduct interviews. There were cases where I was brought in, asked only to repeat what was already written in my CV, and they didn’t ask a single question.

They also don’t respect the candidate’s time—often inviting 50 people at once, making everyone wait for two hours, when they could easily schedule separate time slots,”
— Megi said.

The Problems Continue After Employment

Even after securing a job—often through a poorly managed interview process—the challenges do not end. In many companies, labour rights violations are entrenched practices.

Sandro shared with Fortuna that after countless interviews he eventually secured a job in the service sector at a well-known company. The issues he faced during the interview stage disappeared, but he soon encountered an entirely different reality, one that ultimately forced him to quit and return to unemployment.

“The service sector was a real nightmare. I worked from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. with only one day off per week. The formal one-hour break rarely exceeded 15 minutes because there was always work to be done and never enough staff.

In general, the service sector is full of problems that relevant authorities should be monitoring. Many workers face labour rights violations, and not everyone can afford to quit, which employers exploit,”
— Sandro said.

In short, the problem lies both in unemployment and employment. The employer’s approach to potential hires reveals the deeper systemic issues—from the very first interview all the way through employment conditions. The problem begins at the starting point and ends at a place where even protest seems futile.

In recent years, Georgia has seen some positive developments in employment trends. However, we also remember high-profile strikes by service-sector employees, protests that drew attention but ultimately resulted in few tangible changes.

Legislation is gradually improving workers’ rights—but challenges remain.

The Situation in Europe

Which Countries Need the Most Workers?**

Germany leads Europe with more than 1 million job vacancies, followed by the United Kingdom with 750,000, and France with 500,000. Euronews Business provides a detailed analysis of vacancy levels across Europe.

Labour shortages and unemployment continue to pose serious problems throughout Europe. According to Eurostat, as of May 2025 there were approximately 13.1 million unemployed people in the EU.

Despite numerous initiatives introduced by the European Commission to mitigate employment and social challenges, millions of positions remain unfilled.

Key questions include:
• Where are vacancy rates highest and lowest?
• How many jobs remain open across the continent?
• Which countries have the greatest demand for labour?

Job Vacancy Rates in the EU

In Q2 2025, 2.1% of jobs in the EU were vacant, down from 2.2% in Q1 2025 and 2.4% in Q2 2024.

Vacancy rates vary significantly—from 0.6% in Romania to 4.2% in the Netherlands.
This wide range reflects diverse labour-market conditions across Europe.

Countries with vacancy rates at 3% or higher include:

• Belgium – 4.1%
• Austria – 3.4%
• Norway – 3.4%
• Malta – 3%

These figures illustrate strong labour demand in Northwestern Europe, compared to lower demand in Southern and Eastern Europe.

Vacancy Ranking Across Europe

Among 30 countries—including EU member states, candidate countries, the UK, and EFTA—Germany has the highest number of job vacancies, with approximately 1.05 million open positions.

Germany is also Europe’s most popular destination for migrants. Eurostat reports that in 2023 the country received:
• 324,000 immigrants from EU member states
• 905,000 from non-EU countries
• 42,000 from unknown origins
Total: 1,271,000 immigrants

Unemployment in the European Union

The unemployment rate in the EU stands at 5.9%, and 6.3% in the Eurozone. Eurostat data shows substantial variations among countries.

As of August 2025, Spain had the highest unemployment rate at 10.3%. Unemployment has long been one of Spain’s central economic challenges, although the situation has gradually improved—down from 21.18% in 2015.

Finland and Sweden follow with rates of 9.8% and 8.7%, respectively. One reason for the rise in unemployment in Nordic countries is the distribution of post-COVID EU recovery funds, from which Southern Europe benefited more, potentially accelerating its economic recovery.
Additionally, the Russia–Ukraine conflict and the resulting geopolitical tensions have impacted Finland’s economy.

Also in the top five are Estonia (8.2%) and Greece (8.1%). Along with Spain, Greece has historically been among the countries with the highest unemployment rates.

The lowest unemployment figures were recorded in Malta and Slovenia (2.9% each), followed by Czechia and Poland (3.2% each).