(21 February 2018) – In 2016, around 8.4 million people were employed in a cultural sector or occupation in the European Union (EU), accounting for 3.7% of the total number of persons employed.
Between 2011 and 2016 the number of people working in the area of culture grew steadily, with 549 000 more jobs (+7%) in the EU in 2016 than in 2011.
Almost 2 million of those employed were artists and writers, of whom nearly half (48%) were self-employed. This is a much higher share of self-employed than that reported for total employment (15%).
The level of education of those employed in a cultural area stands out. Almost 60% of people working in culture in the EU had a tertiary education, compared with 34% in total employment.
At Member State level, the highest shares of cultural employment were observed in Estonia (5.3%), ahead of Luxembourg (5.1%) and Sweden (5.0%). At the other end of the scale, the lowest share was observed in Romania (1.6%), followed by Slovakia (2.5%) and Bulgaria (2.8%).