> [!NOTE]+ Meta > Author:: World Crafts Council Europe > Reference:: 2022 > Date:: https://www.craftingeurope.com/findings/ > Tags:: #Europe #warp/report > WeftLinks:: [[Economic value of craft]] ### Summary Craft is a major source of employment in Europe. A large number of these are self-employed. It is particularly strong in Italy, where it generates approximately 500,000 jobs. > Statistics show that most of the employment is generated around individual artisans or enterprises with 2 to 5 workers, which demonstrates the high dispersion of employment in the sector and highlights the close relationship between artisan activity and self-employment. A large number of artisans are legally represented as self-employed. Additionally, many artisans state that they have temporary contracts and most of them dedicate only half a day to the artisanal work. Is important to mention that most of the workers in the sector are middle-aged, between 49 and 50 years old, most of whom have been working in the sector for between 1 to 10 years, which shows that it is a sector that has made room for many people in recent years. Finally, the survey demonstrates that most of the artisans have professional or university studies.