Quarterly monitoring of Georgia's key labour market indicators: employment, unemployment, wages, and sectoral trends. Data from Geostat LFS and Enterprise Survey. Updated each quarter within 8 weeks of Geostat release.
Georgia's unemployment rate has been gradually declining from a post-COVID peak of ~20% in 2021, driven by strong GDP growth, tourism recovery, and the 2022 influx of Russian and Ukrainian workers who stimulated demand in Tbilisi's service economy. However, the headline rate masks high underutilisation — including time-related underemployment and discouraged workers.
Q3 is consistently the lowest unemployment quarter (harvest employment, tourism peak). Q4 rises reflect seasonal agricultural and construction layoffs. Seasonally adjusted rate is approximately 15.8–16.0% throughout 2025–2026.
| Period | Employment Rate | Male | Female | Youth (15–29) | Key driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 Annual | 60.8% | 71.2% | 51.4% | 34.2% | Migration inflows boost Tbilisi demand |
| 2023 Annual | 61.9% | 72.1% | 52.7% | 35.1% | Services and hospitality recovery |
| 2024 Annual | 62.8% | 73.0% | 53.5% | 36.4% | IT, finance, professional services growth |
| Q1 2025 | 62.4% | 72.5% | 53.1% | 35.8% | Seasonal dip (agriculture) |
| Q3 2025 | 65.2% | 75.8% | 55.5% | 38.6% | Seasonal peak — harvest, tourism |
| Q1 2026 | 63.5% | 73.8% | 54.1% | 36.9% | Latest data |
The gender employment gap (~20pp) is large by EU standards (EU average gap ~10pp). Female employment is heavily concentrated in low-wage, part-time, and informal work — the employment rate overstates women's labour market integration relative to their earnings and security. See Gender Pay Gap →
Georgia's labour market is deeply segmented by geography. Tbilisi and Adjara (Batumi) have the most dynamic formal labour markets; rural regions suffer from structural underemployment, with high rates of subsistence agriculture masking very low cash income employment.
Regional data from Geostat LFS 2024 annual averages. "Employment" is employment rate for persons aged 15–64. Informal employment estimates combine LFS and enterprise survey data; figures carry ±5pp uncertainty. Wages are median formal monthly earnings.
| Indicator | Male | Female | Gap | ILO / EU benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment rate (15–64) | 73.8% | 54.1% | 19.7pp | EU avg gap: ~10pp |
| Unemployment rate | 14.2% | 17.8% | 3.6pp | EU avg gap: ~0.5pp |
| NEET rate (15–29) | 19.4% | 36.8% | 17.4pp | EU avg gap: ~6pp |
| Part-time employment share | 9.2% | 22.4% | 13.2pp | Women overrepresented in PT |
| Informal employment rate | 33.8% | 41.2% | 7.4pp | Women more exposed to informality |
| Average monthly wage (formal) | GEL 2,750 | GEL 1,840 | ~33% | EU avg gap: 12.7% |
| Participation in management (%) | ~68% | ~32% | 36pp | Vertical segregation indicator |
| Unpaid care work (hrs/day) | 0.9 hrs | 4.1 hrs | 3.2 hrs | Major driver of employment gap |
Unpaid care work from Geostat Time Use Survey 2021; all other indicators from LFS Q1 2026. The NEET gender gap (17pp) is among the highest in the OECD neighbourhood and reflects both cultural expectations around early marriage/childcare and inadequate childcare infrastructure. See Youth Labour Tool →
| Sector | Employment 2023 (000s) | Employment 2024 (000s) | Q1 2026 trend | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Information and Communication | 32 | 38 | +18% | Strong — EU candidacy, remote work |
| Accommodation and Food Service | 88 | 98 | +11% | Tourism recovery continuing |
| Construction | 89 | 95 | +7% | Real estate boom; Tbilisi-led |
| Financial and Insurance | 44 | 48 | +9% | Banking expansion; fintech growth |
| Professional / Technical | 50 | 55 | +5% | Moderate — Russian expat demand fading |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade | 204 | 210 | +3% | Steady — largest formal employer |
| Education | 112 | 115 | +3% | Slow — public sector wage constraints |
| Health and Social Work | 87 | 90 | +3% | Steady — brain drain to Germany persists |
| Manufacturing | 151 | 155 | +3% | Slow — competitiveness concerns |
| Public Administration | 115 | 118 | +2% | Flat — public sector headcount controls |
| Transportation and Storage | 85 | 88 | +4% | Logistics growth; E-commerce |
| Agriculture (formal only) | 272 | 268 | -1% | Declining formal agri; rural outmigration |
Employment figures are from Geostat Enterprise Survey (formal employment only). Q1 2026 trend is GILS estimate based on partial Q1 data and sectoral survey. Agriculture figures exclude the ~700,000+ subsistence/informal agricultural workers.
| Component | Rate | Persons (approx) | Definition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployed (ILO definition) | 15.8% | ~195,000 | Without work, available, actively seeking |
| Time-related underemployed | +4.1% | ~51,000 | Part-time, want full-time, available for more hours |
| Potential labour force (discouraged) | +2.5% | ~31,000 | Want work, available, but not actively seeking |
| LU4 Composite Underutilisation | 22.4% | ~277,000 | All three components combined |
LU4 is highest among: women (26.8%), youth 15–24 (38.4%), rural residents (28.2%), and persons with disabilities (~55%). See Full Underutilisation Tool →
| Year | Unemployment | Employment Rate | Avg Wage (GEL) | Informal Emp. | GDP growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 12.0% | 57.6% | GEL 881 | ~45% | 2.9% |
| 2016 | 11.8% | 58.0% | GEL 956 | ~44% | 2.8% |
| 2017 | 11.6% | 58.5% | GEL 1,023 | ~43% | 4.8% |
| 2018 | 12.7% | 58.2% | GEL 1,072 | ~42% | 4.8% |
| 2019 | 11.6% | 59.1% | GEL 1,136 | ~40% | 5.1% |
| 2020 | 18.5% | 55.4% | GEL 1,184 | ~41% | -6.8% (COVID) |
| 2021 | 20.6% | 57.2% | GEL 1,320 | ~40% | 10.4% |
| 2022 | 17.3% | 60.8% | GEL 1,576 | ~38% | 10.1% |
| 2023 | 16.4% | 61.9% | GEL 1,822 | ~38% | 7.5% |
| 2024 | 15.9% | 62.8% | GEL 2,105 | ~37% | 8.1% |
| Q1 2026 | 15.8% | 63.5% | GEL 2,364 | ~37% | Est. 6.2% |
Unemployment peaked in 2021 (post-COVID structural adjustment). The 2022 Russian migration wave drove a demand boom in Tbilisi — employment and wages rose sharply, but informality remained persistent. GDP growth has been strong (7–10% in 2021–2024) but has not translated into proportionate labour market improvements, particularly in rural areas.
| Indicator | Georgia | Armenia | Azerbaijan | EU Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 15.9% | 12.4% | 5.8% | ~6.0% |
| Employment rate (15–64) | 62.8% | 60.2% | 68.4% | ~75% |
| Female employment rate | 53.5% | 52.1% | 59.2% | ~68% |
| Informal employment | ~37% | ~32% | ~28% | ~10% |
| Youth NEET rate (15–29) | ~28% | ~24% | ~18% | ~11% |
| Gender pay gap | ~33% | ~35% | ~47% | 12.7% |
| Collective bargaining coverage | ~18% | ~22% | ~15% | ~56% |
South Caucasus data from national statistics agencies and ILOSTAT 2024. EU averages from Eurostat 2023. Azerbaijan's low unemployment reflects high public sector employment and measurement methodology differences. All three South Caucasus countries lag significantly behind EU averages on gender pay gap and collective bargaining coverage.
The 2022–2023 influx of ~100,000+ Russian nationals into Tbilisi drove demand in hospitality, IT, and professional services. As sanctions stabilise and some Russians return or move on, demand-side support for these sectors may weaken. Tbilisi's hospitality and rental markets already showed signs of softening in late 2025.
Georgia's youth NEET rate of ~28% has barely moved despite strong GDP growth — suggesting structural mismatches between education outputs and labour market demand. The education-occupation mismatch is particularly acute in humanities graduates entering a labour market that demands technical skills. See Education Mismatch Tool →
Georgia's EU candidacy process (Chapter 19: Social Policy and Employment) will require harmonisation with EU labour directives on minimum wages, pay transparency, and working conditions. Successfully implementing these reforms would both improve worker protections and signal institutional readiness to EU partners, potentially accelerating candidacy progress.
Georgia's tourism sector is on a sustained growth trajectory — 7.1M international visitors in 2024, up 14% year-on-year. Combined with planned green energy projects (hydropower and solar), these sectors could generate 40,000–60,000 new formal jobs by 2028 if labour-intensive approaches are prioritised in investment design.
The Labour Market Observatory brings together Georgia's key labour statistics in one analytical dashboard. Data originates from three primary sources: Geostat Labour Force Survey (quarterly, ILO methodology, redesigned 2018); the National Bank of Georgia balance of payments statistics (remittances, foreign investment); and MLHSA administrative records (ESDC registrations, work permits, TSA beneficiaries). Each source has different coverage, timeliness, and methodological limitations.
Georgia's labour statistics are methodologically sound by regional standards — the 2018 LFS redesign brought the survey into full ILO compliance and significantly improved rural coverage. However, timely data remains a challenge: LFS microdata is published with a 3-6 month lag; administrative data from MLHSA is often not published at all. The Observatory aims to close the gap between data production and policy-relevant accessibility.
Good labour policy requires good data. Georgia has adequate data for headline indicators but lacks the granular, timely, employer-based data needed for effective labour market governance. GILS advocates for: an annual Employer Survey on Wages (more accurate than LFS for wage measurement); a real-time vacancy data feed from worknet.ge; and a longitudinal panel module added to the LFS. The Observatory is a tool for transparency and accountability — it makes GILS's analysis and Georgia's data accessible to citizens, researchers, and policymakers in one place.
Establish a Quarterly Employer Survey on Wages (QESW): sample 3,000 employers; collect: actual payroll, hours worked, gender breakdown, occupation. More accurate than LFS for wage measurement. Geostat has technical capacity; funding required: GEL 1.2M/year. ILO Statistics will provide technical assistance. First publication: Q1 2026.
Estonia (employer wage survey) · Latvia (quarterly payroll data) · ILO QESW guidelinesworknet.ge has 180,000+ registered vacancies but data is not machine-readable or publicly downloadable. Open API for vacancy data: sector, occupation, region, salary range, date posted. ESDC IT budget: GEL 400K. Enables: employer demand mapping; ALMP targeting; university career services; GILS Observatory real-time vacancy tracking.
Estonia (Tootukassa open vacancy API) · Latvia (NVA vacancy data) · Georgia e-Gov open data initiativeCurrent LFS is cross-sectional — a snapshot. Adding a 2-year longitudinal panel (25% of LFS sample followed for 8 consecutive quarters) enables: tracking NEET transitions into employment; measuring ALMP effectiveness; understanding wage progression. EU Statistics for Policy project (2023-2026) includes funding allocation for this — Geostat should prioritise it.
EU LFS longitudinal module · Moldova (LFS panel 2021) · ILO longitudinal survey guidelinesMLHSA holds: ESDC registration data, work permit data, TSA beneficiary data, LIS inspection data. None is published as machine-readable open data. Establish mlhsa.opendata.ge: monthly publication of aggregate tables; annual microdata release with privacy protection. Cost: GEL 300K setup. Enables independent research and policy accountability.
Estonia (EMTA open data) · Georgia gov.ge open data portal (extend to MLHSA)No regional labour statistics coordination exists. Georgia should initiate a South Caucasus Labour Statistics Compact: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan; comparable LFS methodology; annual joint publication; shared metadata standards. Enables: South Caucasus comparisons (currently methodologically inconsistent); joint ILO reporting; regional policy learning. Host: ILO Decent Work Team for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
ILO DWT Eastern Europe · Baltic Labour Market Statistics (model for harmonisation) · OECD data harmonisation| Standard | Subject | Adopted | Compliance | Key Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ILO LFS | Labour Force Survey (ILO methodology) | 2018 redesign | Good | Quarterly, ILO-compliant; 6-month publication lag |
| ICLS-19 | Resolution on Work, Employment, Labour | Adopted 2018 | Partial | Labour underutilisation measured; subsistence agriculture classification improving |
| C160 | Labour Statistics | 1993 | Partial | No employer wage survey; vacancy data not systematic |
| EUROSTAT ESS | EU Statistical Standards | In progress | Partial | DCFTA alignment ongoing; national accounts and business statistics priority areas |