cde.news desk · 4 min read
The European Union’s largest-ever generalist recruitment competition began on Monday with 174,727 candidates chasing 1,490 places on a reserve list. Almost half of them, 79,343, are Italian. That has raised questions about the Commission’s efforts to correct geographical imbalances in its workforce, according to a Euronews report.
Italians make up 45.4 percent of applicants, even though Italy is not among the 15 countries the Commission currently treats as underrepresented. Italy’s applicants outnumber those from Spain (13,789), Germany (11,699) and France (10,939) combined. Far fewer came from the Netherlands (2,729), Denmark (987) and Luxembourg (630).
The 2026 competition, run by the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO), follows a seven-year gap since the last generalist exam. Previous generalist competitions drew between 21,000 and 51,000 applicants, and around 22,000 in both 2018 and 2019. This year’s total is almost eight times the 2019 figure. EPSO says more than 90 percent of candidates do not currently work for EU institutions.
EPSO director Olivier Salles said past competitions suggest successful candidates’ nationalities broadly mirror those of applicants, though drop-out rates can cause variations. He said it was too early to predict the geographical spread of successful candidates this time. He added that available data does not show significant differences in pass rates between nationalities.
Rules apply at interview stage
In 2025, the Commission introduced hiring guidelines to prioritise candidates from 15 underrepresented countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Finland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovakia, Lithuania and Latvia.
The rules require hiring managers to invite at least one qualified candidate from such a country to final interviews. They also allow managers to favour these candidates when qualifications are equal, and they set recruitment targets. They apply only after candidates have passed the exam, and EPSO scoring remains merit-based. The Commission says no jobs are reserved for particular nationalities.
Under Article 27 of the EU Staff Regulations, a country is significantly underrepresented if its staff presence falls below 80 percent of its target rate. That rate is based on the country’s European Parliament seats and population. Germany stands at 64 percent and France at 73 percent. The Commission is also concerned about retirements, with Germany projected to lose about 16 percent of its current staff.
Italy has around 1,848 administrators at the Commission, against 1,571 from France, 1,370 from Germany, 380 from the Netherlands, 264 from Sweden and 191 from Denmark. Raw numbers do not settle the question, however, because larger countries are expected to supply more staff. Belgium is heavily overrepresented, partly because Brussels hosts most of the workforce.
The Commission developed Joint Action Plans with the 15 states in 2023, followed by stronger rules adopted on 6 November 2025. These focus on early-career officials in grades AD5 to AD8. A 2024 review found earlier measures, including outreach campaigns and exam preparation support, had achieved little. Spain has challenged the legality of the rules, arguing they risk discriminating against candidates from other member states, with France and Belgium backing its case.
If Italian candidates pass in similar proportions, they could dominate the reserve list. The Commission also cannot recruit from countries with small applicant pools unless enough of their candidates pass.
Salles attributed the surge in applications to remote testing, broader eligibility, tests in all 24 official EU languages and openness to graduates of any discipline. He also cited a steady rise in applications since 2019 and the viral spread of messages about the competition in some member states. The assessment centre has been replaced by online tests and an essay, split into two stages. Reasoning tests take place this week and the rest in 2027. Salles said technical problems could not be ruled out, but every effort was being made to limit disruption.
Euronews linked differing interest in EU careers to pay and labour-market conditions. Eurostat data show 2025 annual net earnings of €36,489.56 in Luxembourg, €32,052.35 in Ireland and €25,750.34 in the Netherlands, against €13,107.24 in Czechia and €12,950.21 in Estonia. The OECD found real wages fell between the first quarters of 2021 and 2026 by 2 percent in Spain, 5.8 percent in Czechia and 6.1 percent in Italy. Unemployment in May 2026 was 10.3 percent in Spain and 8.1 percent in Greece, compared with 3.8 percent in Germany and 3.9 percent in the Netherlands.
The Commission says 46 regions are in a “talent development trap”, unable to offset the loss of highly educated working-age residents. These include nearly all of Bulgaria and Romania, Sicily and parts of Portugal. Another 36 regions, home to nearly 30 percent of the EU population, are at risk.
Read more via Euronews
Source: Iwpost.com
