Incidence of involuntary: Involuntary part-time employment in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Incidence of involuntary: Involuntary part-time employment was 2.53 Percentage of employment in 2025. ▲ Rising
Incidence of involuntary part time employment — Involuntary part-time in United Kingdom, 1983–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of employment.
Analysis
In 2025, incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time in United Kingdom stood at 2.53 Percentage of employment.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and down 40.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time in United Kingdom peaked at 4.95 Percentage of employment in 2013 and was at its lowest, 1.37 Percentage of employment, in 1990.
United Kingdom ranks 17th of 35 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 42 years of available data.
Incidence of involuntary: Involuntary part-time employment in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Percentage of employment | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 1.7 Percentage of employment | — |
| 1984 | 1.92 Percentage of employment | +12.9% |
| 1985 | 1.97 Percentage of employment | +2.5% |
| 1986 | 2.18 Percentage of employment | +10.4% |
| 1987 | 2.24 Percentage of employment | +2.9% |
| 1988 | 1.92 Percentage of employment | -14.2% |
| 1989 | 1.57 Percentage of employment | -18.6% |
| 1990 | 1.37 Percentage of employment | -12.4% |
| 1991 | 1.77 Percentage of employment | +29.2% |
| 1992 | 2.57 Percentage of employment | +44.8% |
| 1993 | 3.12 Percentage of employment | +21.5% |
| 1994 | 3.28 Percentage of employment | +5.2% |
| 1995 | 3.21 Percentage of employment | -2.1% |
| 1996 | 3.09 Percentage of employment | -3.7% |
| 1997 | 3.04 Percentage of employment | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 2.84 Percentage of employment | -6.6% |
| 1999 | 2.61 Percentage of employment | -7.9% |
| 2000 | 2.44 Percentage of employment | -6.5% |
| 2001 | 2.25 Percentage of employment | -7.8% |
| 2002 | 2.06 Percentage of employment | -8.6% |
| 2003 | 2.05 Percentage of employment | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 1.9 Percentage of employment | -7.2% |
| 2005 | 2.04 Percentage of employment | +7.3% |
| 2006 | 2.14 Percentage of employment | +5.0% |
| 2007 | 2.34 Percentage of employment | +9.4% |
| 2009 | 3.49 Percentage of employment | +49.3% |
| 2010 | 3.99 Percentage of employment | +14.2% |
| 2011 | 4.68 Percentage of employment | +17.4% |
| 2012 | 4.88 Percentage of employment | +4.3% |
| 2013 | 4.95 Percentage of employment | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 4.56 Percentage of employment | -7.9% |
| 2015 | 4.27 Percentage of employment | -6.3% |
| 2016 | 3.67 Percentage of employment | -14.2% |
| 2017 | 3.31 Percentage of employment | -9.8% |
| 2018 | 2.95 Percentage of employment | -10.7% |
| 2019 | 2.9 Percentage of employment | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 2.99 Percentage of employment | +3.1% |
| 2021 | 2.96 Percentage of employment | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 2.53 Percentage of employment | -14.5% |
| 2023 | 2.46 Percentage of employment | -2.6% |
| 2024 | 2.51 Percentage of employment | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 2.53 Percentage of employment | +0.8% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 2.53 Percentage of employment is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.53 Percentage of employment, 1.0× the median. (31 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 2.53 Percentage of employment is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.26 Percentage of employment, 1.1× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.93 Percentage of employment | 1.57 Percentage of employment | 2.24 Percentage of employment | 7 |
| 1990s | 2.69 Percentage of employment | 1.37 Percentage of employment | 3.28 Percentage of employment | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.3 Percentage of employment | 1.9 Percentage of employment | 3.49 Percentage of employment | 9 |
| 2010s | 4.02 Percentage of employment | 2.9 Percentage of employment | 4.95 Percentage of employment | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.66 Percentage of employment | 2.46 Percentage of employment | 2.99 Percentage of employment | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More work & labour data for United Kingdom
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 22,956 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 60.91 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 35,770 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.93 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.07 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 111,361 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 100,223 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 57.91 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.47 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.4352 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time in United Kingdom?
- Incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time in United Kingdom was 2.53 Percentage of employment in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 4.95 Percentage of employment in 2013.
- What is the lowest incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.37 Percentage of employment in 1990.
- How does United Kingdom rank for incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time?
- United Kingdom ranks 17th out of 35 countries with data for 2025.
- Is incidence of involuntary part time employment — involuntary part-time rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 40.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Incidence of involuntary part time employment — Involuntary part-time employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
This dataset contains incidences and gender composition of part-time employment with standardised (15-24, 25-54, 55-64, 65+, total) and detailed age groups. Data are further broken down by professional status - employees, total employment. Part-time employment is based on national definitions. Detailed notes and sources can be found in LFS_NOTES_SOURCES. In order to facilitate analysis and comparisons over time, historical data for OECD members have been provided over as long a period as possible, often even before a country became a member of the Organisation. Information on the membership dates of all OECD countries can be found at OECD Ratification Dates.