Poland was among 5 countries with the lowest unemployment rate of 4,6%, i.e. 0.1 percentage point less compared toAugust this year. In turn, compared to August last year, it decreased by 1.3 percentage points (from 5,9%).

According to estimates by the Eurostat, in August this year, the number of unemployed in Poland was slightly over 791 thousand, that is about 41 thousand less than in August 2016.

The EU28 unemployment rate was 7.5% in September 2017, stable compared to August 2017 and down from 8.4% in September 2016. This remains the lowest rate recorded in the EU28 since November 2008.

These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. Eurostat estimates that 18.446 million men and women in the EU28, of whom 14.513 million in the euro area, were unemployed in September 2017. Compared with August 2017, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 116 000 in the EU28 and by 96 000 in the euro area. Compared with September 2016, unemployment fell by 2.076 million in the EU28 and by 1.463 million in the euro area.

Among the Member States, the lowest unemployment rates in September 2017 were recorded in the Czech Republic (2.7%), Germany (3.6%) and Malta (4.1%). The highest unemployment rates were observed in Greece (21.0% in July 2017) and Spain (16.7%).

Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate fell in all Member States for which data is comparable over time, except Finland where it remained stable and Lithuania where it increased (from 7.6% to 7.7%). The largest decreases were registered in Cyprus (from 13.0% to 10.3%), Spain (from 19.1% to 16.7%) and Greece (from 23.4% to 21.0% between July 2016 and July 2017).