Overview

• Italy counted 24.169 million employed in Q2 2025, up 226,000 year on year, with the employment rate at 62.6% and labor input rising 0.2% quarter on quarter and 1.7% year on year.
• The Mezzogiorno’s employment rate reached 50.1% for the first time in the Istat series, with 6.549 million employed, a gain of 96,000 over the year.
• Istat notes slower momentum versus Q1 as job growth halved on an annual comparison, hours worked per employee declined, and press analyses point to a 0.1% quarterly GDP dip that signals weaker productivity.
• Gains are concentrated in permanent full-time roles (+296,000) and among over‑50 workers (+422,000 year on year), while precarious positions fell (−221,000) and employment for 15–24 year‑olds declined 1.7% with a higher youth jobless rate.
• Large gaps persist, with the South far below the national rate and the North near 69.9%, and southern female employment at 37.8% versus 62.7% for men, as earlier reports also noted an Istat technical revision trimming about 120,000 from prior employment counts.