Georgia’s labor market: unemployment down but workforce participation also falls

The National Statistics Office (Geostat) reports that Georgia’s unemployment rate declined in the third quarter of 2025, even as fewer people participated in the labor force. The unemployment rate dropped by 0.5 percentage points year-on-year, reaching 13.3%.

Despite the improvement in unemployment, overall labor force participation also slipped. In Q3 2025, the share of the labor force within the population aged 15 and older stood at 54.5%, a 0.1 percentage point decrease compared to the same period last year.

Participation trends diverged between urban and rural areas. In Urban settlements participation fell by 0.2 percentage points, while in rural settlements it rose by 0.1 percentage points.

In the third quarter:

Employees: 3 thousand people (up 0.1%)
Self-employed: 4 thousand (down 3.3%)
Unemployed: 7 thousand (down 5.4%)
Overall employment increased slightly. The employment rate rose by 0.2 percentage points, reaching 47%.

Unemployment dynamics varied sharply depending on location. In Urban areas, unemployment increased by 1.1 percentage points, while in rural areas it decreased by 3 percentage points.

Gender gaps remain
Geostat’s data shows that long-standing gender differences remain largely unchanged, with women making up 44% of labor force and men 67%. However, employment rates changed with women falling by 0.7 percentage points, while men rose by 1.2 percentage points.

As in previous periods, unemployment continues to be higher among men than women, and men also participate in the labor force at significantly higher rates.

Source Link