Employment in Iran
Iran: Employment was 24,568 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employment in Iran, 1982–2024
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Iran recorded 24,568 for employment in 2024. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 17.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in Iran peaked at 24,568 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5,025, in 1982.
Iran ranks 23rd of 174 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Employment in Iran, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 5,025 | — |
| 1996 | 14,572 | +190.0% |
| 2005 | 19,847 | +36.2% |
| 2006 | 20,202 | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 20,522 | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 20,032 | -2.4% |
| 2009 | 20,547 | +2.6% |
| 2010 | 20,245 | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 20,109 | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 20,283 | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 20,953 | +3.3% |
| 2014 | 20,997 | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 21,681 | +3.3% |
| 2016 | 22,149 | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 23,012 | +3.9% |
| 2018 | 23,436 | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 24,047 | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 23,066 | -4.1% |
| 2021 | 23,211 | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 23,508 | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 24,277 | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 24,568 | +1.2% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 24,568 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3,125, 7.9× the median. (50 countries reporting)
- Iran's 24,568 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 4,279, 5.7× the median. (18 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Employment in Iran changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | +190.0% | 5,025 | 14,572 |
| 2005 | +36.2% | 14,572 | 19,847 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5,025 | 5,025 | 5,025 | 1 |
| 1990s | 14,572 | 14,572 | 14,572 | 1 |
| 2000s | 20,230 | 19,847 | 20,547 | 5 |
| 2010s | 21,691 | 20,109 | 24,047 | 10 |
| 2020s | 23,726 | 23,066 | 24,568 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More work & labour data for Iran
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 44,188 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 40.34 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 29,874 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 8.53 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 2.43 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 57,320 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 20,416 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 36.89 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.89 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.574 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in Iran?
- Employment in Iran was 24,568 in 2024, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employment recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 24,568 in 2024.
- What is the lowest employment recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 5,025 in 1982.
- How does Iran rank for employment?
- Iran ranks 23rd out of 174 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employment rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iran data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).