The unemployment rate in France continued to rise slowly, to 7.7% in the third quarter, according to INSEE

“The youth unemployment rate is decreasing, the proportion of young people who are neither working nor receiving training is also decreasing,” Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou rejoiced.

The unemployment rate in France increased slightly to reach 7.7% of the working population. In its quarterly update, published Thursday, November 13, the National Statistics Institute (Insee) announced that unemployment increased in the third quarter of 2025, by 0.1 points over the quarter and 0.3 points over the year. The number of unemployed as defined by the International Labor Office, as those who are looking for work and willing to take a job within two weeks, increased by 44,000 compared to the previous quarter, to 2.4 million people, INSEE observed.

“Thus, the unemployment rate is 0.3 points higher than the level in the third quarter of 2024, but still well below the peak in mid-2015 (-2.8 points)”continued the agency, which also revised upward its forecast for the second quarter: from 7.5% to 7.6% of the active population.

“The trend is slightly upward, by 0.6 points over the last two and a half years, in contrast to the long period of almost regular decline we experienced between mid-2015, when we were at 10.5%, the highest point, and the end of 2022, when we hit 7.1%”commented the head of INSEE’s Department of Employment and Income, Vladimir Passeron.

Over the course of a year, unemployment increases “driven by the median age (24-49 years), plus 0.5 points, and the elderly, plus 0.4 points, while for the younger generation aged 15 to 24 years, the unemployment rate fell 0.8 points to 18.8%”, continued Vladimir Passeron. During the quarter, the unemployment rate for the 15-24 age group, which was specifically studied, decreased by 0.2 points. In addition, the number of young people aged 15 to 29 years who are not working, not undergoing training, or not attending school, fell by 0.2 points to 12.5%. A proportion that is still 0.3 points above its level in the previous year.

These numbers “indicates a generally stable situation”, the reaction of the Minister of Labour, Jean-Pierre Farandou. “The youth unemployment rate is decreasing, the proportion of young people who are not working and not participating in training is also decreasing”he said as he added that “Employment and activity levels remain high and employment continues to increase. In the difficult economic context we are experiencing, these are positive signs for employment”he closed.

Eric Heyer, director of the Analysis and Forecasting department at the French Observatory of Economic Conditions (OFCE), sees the decline in youth unemployment as an illusion. He noted that their employment rate also fell during the quarter (-0.3 points), to 34.7%. Some young people “lost job, but did not register as unemployed”, underlines the economist. “Either they’ve gone back to school, for example apprentices who lost their apprenticeship contracts, or those who were discouraged have dropped out of the active population, so we can’t be happy about that.”