The number of employed people in Albania reached 1.17 million in 2025. Compared to the previous year, employment recorded a slight decline of 0.4%. According to data published by INSTAT, the unemployment rate for people aged 15 and over fell to 8.4%, down from 8.5% a year earlier.
However, the labour market continued to be marked by significant gender disparities. The unemployment rate among women stood at 9.7%, compared with 7.3% for men. Meanwhile, only 62.7% of working-age women were employed, compared with 76% of men, resulting in an employment gap of 13.3 percentage points.
Another positive indicator was wage growth. The average gross monthly salary for employees reached 84,100 lekë in 2025, an increase of 8.6% compared to the previous year. At the same time, the gender pay gap narrowed to 4.6%, down from 4.9% in 2024, although men continued to earn more on average than women.
The data also show that 12.6% of employees earned the minimum wage, 14.4% received salaries above 120,000 lekë, and 25.3% earned between 60,000 and 90,000 lekë per month.
By sector, employment remained dominated by services and agriculture. Around 47% of workers were employed in the services sector, while 34% worked in agriculture.
Overall, the 2025 figures point to a more stable labour market, characterized by declining unemployment, rising wages, and lower levels of informality.
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