Informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Informal employment was 6,359 in 2018. ▲ Rising
Informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2007–2018
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 6,359 for informal employment in 2018.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 11.6% on the previous year and up 19.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 7,197 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 3,909, in 2010.
That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 19th out of 81 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 5,247 | — |
| 2008 | 5,342 | +1.8% |
| 2009 | 5,929 | +11.0% |
| 2010 | 3,909 | -34.1% |
| 2011 | 4,506 | +15.3% |
| 2012 | 4,755 | +5.5% |
| 2013 | 4,638 | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 4,488 | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 4,644 | +3.5% |
| 2016 | 5,026 | +8.2% |
| 2017 | 7,197 | +43.2% |
| 2018 | 6,359 | -11.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5,506 | 5,247 | 5,929 | 3 |
| 2010s | 5,058 | 3,909 | 7,197 | 9 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More work & labour data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- 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)
- 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)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 61.4% (2025)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Informal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 6,359 in 2018, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest informal employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 7,197 in 2017.
- What is the lowest informal employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3,909 in 2010.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for informal employment?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 19th out of 81 countries with data for 2018.
- Is informal employment rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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 is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for informal employment 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. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.