The Situation of the Employed Population in Romania

To mark International Workers’ Day, celebrated annually on May 1 and dedicated to recognizing workers’ contributions and rights, Monitorul Social presents an analysis of trends in Romania’s employed population from 2008 to 2024.

The employed population includes all persons who habitually engage in an income-generating occupation, whether as part of an economic or social activity, under an employment contract or on a self-employed basis, for the purpose of earning income in the form of wages, payment in kind, or other types of compensation. According to the NIS, the civilian employed population does not include military personnel and those treated as such (personnel of the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Romanian Intelligence Service), prisoners, and employees of political and public organizations.

Following accession to the European Union, between 2008 and 2024, Romania’s civilian employed population decreased by one million people: from 8.7 million (2008) to 7.7 million (2024).

During the same period, the number of employees increased, from 5.2 million to 5.8 million. The categories that decreased the most in percentage terms were: unpaid family workers (72% fewer in 2024 than in 2008) and self-employed workers (31% fewer).

The share of the civilian population employed in publicly owned enterprises remained constant (16.6% in 2008, 16.5% in 2024), while the share of the population employed in the private sector increased from 79.9% to 81.8%.

The employment rate of the working-age population is calculated as the percentage of the employed population relative to the resident population aged 15 to 64. This ratio saw a slight increase between 2008 (62.5%) and 2024 (63.4%).

For women, the employment rate is lower: 57.8% in 2008, 58.3% in 2024.

There are significant variations among counties regarding employment rates for the working-age population. The highest rates are recorded in Cluj (78%), Timiș (77%), and Sibiu (74%) counties. In Bucharest, the number of employed persons (1.3 million) exceeds the resident working-age population, due to the fact that a significant number of residents from neighboring counties work there. The lowest employment rates are in the counties of Giurgiu (40%), Botoșani (41%), and Călărași (41%).

These data highlight the need for public policies that support equitable access to work, reduce regional disparities, and improve conditions for all workers.

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Data source: National Institute of Statistics, Tempo Online (http://statistici.insse.ro:8077/tempo-online/#/pages/tables/insse-table ):

• Civilian employed population by national economic activities at the CAEN Rev.2 section level, by sex, macroregions, development regions, and counties (FOM103D)
• Civilian employed population by national economic activities at the CAEN Rev.2 section level, by employment status of the employed population (FOM103E)
• Civilian employed population by national economic activities at the CAEN Rev.2 section level and by form of ownership (FOM103F)
• Resident population as of July 1 by age groups and ages, sex, areas of residence, macro-regions, development regions, and counties (POP106A)

Data processing and text design: Mircea Kivu

Infographic: Pascalone Media SRL