Euro-Zone Unemployment

Last month, unemployment in the 17 nations that comprise the Eurozone reached a record high of 11.6%, as 18.5 million people found themselves jobless. That includes 146,000 more workers who lost their jobs last month, according to official statistical agency of the European Union, Eurostat.

The region, wracked by a severe debt crisis, has watched its unemployment rate surge since early 2008, when joblessness was under 7.5%. Spain’s 25.8% jobless rate and Greece’s 25.1% figure were again at the top of the scale for European Union members. Austria and Luxembourg, with 4.4% and 5.2% rates respectively, rounded out the bottom.