Employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Estonia
Estonia: Employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) was 29.93 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Estonia, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
In 2025, employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) in Estonia stood at 29.93.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 14.4% on the previous year and up 55.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) in Estonia peaked at 35.12 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 8.31, in 2018.
Estonia ranks 44th of 46 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Estonia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 17.39 | — |
| 2015 | 19.23 | +10.6% |
| 2016 | 18.11 | -5.8% |
| 2017 | 17.32 | -4.3% |
| 2018 | 8.31 | -52.0% |
| 2019 | 18.17 | +118.6% |
| 2020 | 18.92 | +4.1% |
| 2021 | 33.76 | +78.4% |
| 2022 | 35.12 | +4.1% |
| 2023 | 34.26 | -2.5% |
| 2024 | 34.96 | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 29.93 | -14.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 16.42 | 8.31 | 19.23 | 6 |
| 2020s | 31.16 | 18.92 | 35.12 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Estonia
More work & labour data for Estonia
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.67 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6763 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.6638 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.77 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate -0.1039 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 885.23 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 259.52 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 417.66 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 407.84 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 825.5 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) in Estonia?
- Employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) in Estonia was 29.93 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in Estonia?
- The highest recorded value was 35.12 in 2022.
- What is the lowest employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in Estonia?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.31 in 2018.
- How does Estonia rank for employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19)?
- Estonia ranks 44th out of 46 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition - icls19) rising or falling in Estonia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 55.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Estonia data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.