Between 2011 and 2015 the number of people working in the area of culture grew steadily, with 410 000 more cultural jobs (+7%) in the EU in 2015 than in 2011. In 2015, nearly 6.5 million people were employed in the cultural sector in the European Union (EU). This sector accounted for almost 3% of the total number of persons employed.

Almost 2 million of those employed were artists and writers, of whom nearly half (49%) 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 cultural field stands out. Slightly more than 60% of people working in culture in the EU had a tertiary education, almost double the share of those in total employment (33%).

Highest share of cultural employment in Luxembourg, lowest in Romania

At Member State level, the highest shares of cultural employment were observed in Luxembourg (4.4%), ahead of Estonia and Sweden (4.1% each) as well as Finland (4.0%). At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest share was observed in Romania (1.2%), followed by Slovakia (2.0%), Greece (2.1%), Bulgaria and Portugal (2.3% each).