Public Employment Services across Europe are increasingly using digital tools and artificial intelligence to register jobseekers, match people to vacancies and track customer satisfaction.
Public Employment Services (PES) — the public bodies that help people find work and connect employers with candidates — reported wider use of online services as their client base ages and labour market conditions shift, the European Commission noted in a release on Thursday.
Registered jobseeker numbers were broadly unchanged in 2024, but the share of clients aged 55 and over rose, tertiary education levels increased and the proportion of women increased slightly.
Most services said they were expanding digital systems for core tasks such as registration and vacancy matching, while 63% reported using AI for profiling jobseekers or matching candidates to jobs.
Youth Guarantee role grows, alongside reforms
Public Employment Services are more involved in managing and delivering the reinforced Youth Guarantee — an EU initiative designed to ensure young people receive an offer of employment, education, apprenticeship or training — with involvement increasing since 2023 across different phases of delivery, the Commission said.
Use of profiling tools in the Youth Guarantee context rose to 97%, and services reported growing involvement in outreach and labour market analysis to identify obstacles facing young people entering work.
Across the network, 56% of services — 18 out of 32 — implemented substantial reforms during the review period, including internal restructuring, changes to processes, improvements to labour market information systems and new tools for specific target groups.
Resource pressures continued, with 38% of services increasing staff between 2023 and 2025 while 62% reported reductions, and longer-term spending falling in real terms despite a short-term rise in 2024 driven by social benefits.
