Where Unemployment Benefits are the Highest, in OECD Countries

Marcus Lu
2024-06-17 12:17:14
www.visualcapitalist.com

Ranked: Unemployment Benefits in OECD Countries

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This graphic ranks OECD countries by their level of unemployment benefits offered. This is measured by the percentage of previous in-work income a person would earn after being unemployed for one year.

Calculations reference a single person without children, whose previous in-work earnings were 67% of the average wage in each country. Data for this graphic and article can be accessed at OECD.org.

As of 2024, the OECD has 38 member countries plus several accession candidates.

OECD Countries by Unemployment Support

Luxembourg tops the rankings of OECD countries by unemployment benefits. Workers in the country can receive 87% of their previous employed income for up to a full year out of work.

Rank	Country	% of previous in-work income received after 1 year
1	Luxembourg	87
2	Belgium	78
3	Denmark	78
4	Bulgaria*	77
5	Portugal	75
6	Switzerland	72
7	Norway	67
8	France	66
9	Spain	66
10	Netherlands	64
11	Sweden	64
12	Italy	62
13	Iceland	61
14	Germany	60
15	Finland	58
16	Austria	51
17	Malta*	49
18	Greece	47
19	Estonia	45
20	Slovenia	44
21	New Zealand	42
22	Croatia*	41
23	Cyprus*	38
24	Japan	38
25	Romania*	38
26	Ireland	35
27	Australia	32
28	Poland	31
29	South Korea	23
30	Canada	22
31	Israel	22
32	Lithuania	21
33	Czechia	20
34	UK	16
35	Latvia	14
36	Slovakia	10
37	Türkiye	10
38	Hungary	9
39	U.S.	9

*Not formally in the OECD. Data unavailable for Costa Rica, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico. Figures current up to 2023.

However, there are stipulations to receiving this money. This includes being fit and willing to work as well as already registered in the National Employment Agency.

After a 10 percentage point gap, Belgium and Denmark all but tie at second place at 78%.

Bulgaria, Portugal, and Switzerland round out the top six, all supporting their unemployed with more than 70% of their previous incomes.

It’s worth pointing out here that five of these top six countries have some of the highest personal income taxes in the world.

On the other end of the rankings, the workers in the U.S. and Hungary only receive 9% of their earlier incomes after a year out of work.

The post Where Unemployment Benefits are the Highest, in OECD Countries appeared first on Visual Capitalist.