Long term unemployment is being unemployed for over a year.
Seven out of ten regions in Europe with the highest long-term unemployment rates are Greek regions, according to recent data released by Eurostat earlier in the month.
Figures show that last year 77.3 % of the unemployed in Attica, the region that encompasses Athens, had lost their jobs over a year ago, a figure which is also the highest in the EU.
The other Greek areas with the highest long-term unemployment rates are Western Greece (76.7%), Epirus (75.8%), Central Macedonia (75.2%), Peloponnese (73.8%), Thessaly (73.5%), Central Greece (72.2%).
Slovakia (position 7 and 10) and Spain (9th)also feature on the 10 wort list.
In Greece all unemployment benefits stop after a year.
The picture the data paints for the whole of Europe is not a very good one either. According to Eurostat, more than seven out of 10 (73.5%) unemployed Europeans in 2014 have been unemployed for over a year.
The regions with the least numbers of long term unemployed are in Sweden (position 1,3,4,5,6,7,8) Romania (2nd) Finland (9th) and Denmark (10th)
Eurostat
