Human rights organisations and trade unions in Lithuania expressed concern about widespread exploitation of foreign workers in the country, BNS reported. Trade unions said that third-country nationals often had their passports or residence permits taken away at work, were assigned jobs different from those agreed, and were being subjected to excessive overtime and arbitrary fines….
Estonia had an average 38,000 people registered as unemployed in the third quarter of 2026, which was 5,600 (13%) fewer than in the same period of 2025, according to the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund (Töötukassa), ERR reported. The share of the country’s working-age labour force registered as unemployed stood at 5.5%, which was down from…
Altogether 12,294 Lithuanian citizens returned to Lithuania while 11,753 moved away from the country in the first nine months of 2026, according to the State Data Agency’s preliminary statistics, LRT reported. In September 2026, the number of emigrants was higher than that of returnees. Until now, the number of Lithuanians returning home has been higher…
Estonia’s population is smaller but richer and healthier now than it was at the restoration of the country’s independence in 1991, according to Statistics Estonia’s data, ERR reports. Estonia’s population totalled 1,360,745 people in the beginning of 2026, which was down 13.2% from 1,567,749 in 1991. Native Estonian-speakers now account for 68.5% of Estonia’s population,…
Three political groups in the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, have signed an agreement on a new coalition government, BNS reports. The new ruling coalition will include the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP), the Union of Democrats for Lithuania, and the joint parliamentary group of the Lithuanian Union of Farmers and Greens and the Electoral Action…
Three parties in Lithuania have agreed on a coalition programme and the number of ministerial posts in a new incoming government, LRT and ELTA reported. The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) will have nine ministers, while the Union of Democrats for Lithuania (DSVL) will have three and the Lithuanian Union of Farmers and Greens…
Employment in Lithuania rose at the fastest pace in the entire EU in the first quarter of 2026, according to Eurostat data, ELTA reported. Lithuania’s employment rate rose by 1.8% over a quarter. Meanwhile, employment in Estonia rose by 0.9% and in Latvia by just 0.1%. However, compared to the first quarter of 2025, the…
The number of unemployed people in Latvia totalled 66,400 in the first quarter of 2026, which was 3,100 (4.5%) fewer than in the same period of 2025, the Central Statistical Bureau (CSP) reported. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, the number of unemployed rose by 2,600 (4.0%), however. The country’s unemployment rate stood at…
The number of unemployed people in Estonia totalled 52,200 in the first quarter of 2026, which was 5,100 more than in the fourth quarter of 2025, but much lower than in the first quarter of 2025, according to data from Statistics Estonia, ERR reports. Estonia’s unemployment rate stood at 7.1%, which was up 0.7 percentage…
