Employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China
Hong Kong, China: Employers, total (% of total employment) was 1.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Hong Kong, China recorded 1.9% for employers, total (% of total employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.3% on the previous year and down 34.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China peaked at 5.7% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 2025.
Hong Kong, China ranks 141st of 187 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 5.7% | — |
| 1992 | 5.7% | -0.7% |
| 1993 | 5.7% | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 5.3% | -5.9% |
| 1995 | 5.2% | -3.0% |
| 1996 | 5.3% | +1.9% |
| 1997 | 5.1% | -3.0% |
| 1998 | 4.9% | -3.3% |
| 1999 | 4.9% | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 4.6% | -5.5% |
| 2001 | 4.8% | +4.9% |
| 2002 | 4.8% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 4.7% | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 4.5% | -4.6% |
| 2005 | 4.3% | -5.4% |
| 2006 | 4.2% | -2.2% |
| 2007 | 3.9% | -7.3% |
| 2008 | 3.5% | -9.5% |
| 2009 | 3.5% | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 3.5% | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 3.5% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 3.3% | -4.6% |
| 2013 | 3.2% | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 2.9% | -8.9% |
| 2015 | 2.9% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 2.8% | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 2.8% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 2.5% | -9.8% |
| 2019 | 2.6% | +4.2% |
| 2020 | 2.7% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 2.2% | -16.7% |
| 2022 | 2.2% | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 2.3% | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 2.0% | -13.9% |
| 2025 | 1.9% | -1.3% |
Hong Kong, China compared with similar countries
- Hong Kong, China's 1.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 3.4%, 57% of the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Hong Kong, China's 1.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.2%, 60% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5.3% | 4.9% | 5.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 4.3% | 3.5% | 4.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.0% | 2.5% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.2% | 1.9% | 2.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Hong Kong, China
More work & labour data for Hong Kong, China
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 2,981 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 55.13 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 3,663 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 2.78 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.06 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 149,185 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 100,833 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 53.6 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.56 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -1.12 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China?
- Employers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China was 1.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest employers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Hong Kong, China?
- The highest recorded value was 5.7% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Hong Kong, China?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 2025.
- How does Hong Kong, China rank for employers, total (% of total employment)?
- Hong Kong, China ranks 141st out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employers, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Hong Kong, China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 34.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Hong Kong, China data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Employers, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Employers are those workers who, working on their own account or with one or a few partners, hold the type of jobs defined as a "self-employment jobs" i.e. jobs where the remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits derived from the goods and services produced), and, in this capacity, have engaged, on a continuous basis, one or more persons to work for them as employee(s).