Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) was 35,877 in 2025. β–² Rising

Latest (2025)
35,877
Change on year
up 2.8%
World rank
8th
of 69 countries
All-time high
35,877
in 2025
All-time low
32,749
in 2014
Years of data
12
2014–2025

Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in United Kingdom, 2014–2025

010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k2014201920252014: 32.7k2015: 33.0k2016: 33.3k2017: 33.5k2018: 33.8k2019: 34.0k2020: 34.2k2021: 33.8k2022: 34.0k2023: 34.4k2024: 34.9k2025: 35.9k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

The most recent figure for labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in United Kingdom is 35,877, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.8% on the previous year and up 8.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in United Kingdom peaked at 35,877 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 32,749, in 2014.

That places United Kingdom 8th out of 69 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 33,404 32,749 34,017 6
2020s 34,524 33,809 35,877 6

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 5 Viet Nam 52,516 compare
  2. 6 Ghana 46,707 compare
  3. 7 Germany 44,246 compare
  4. 9 France 31,834 compare
  5. 10 Korea 29,710 compare
  6. 11 Italy 25,693 compare

See the full ranking of 69 places β†’

More work & labour data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in United Kingdom?
Labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in United Kingdom was 35,877 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 35,877 in 2025.
What is the lowest labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 32,749 in 2014.
How does United Kingdom rank for labour force (current ilo definition - icls19)?
United Kingdom ranks 8th out of 69 countries with data for 2025.
Is labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is up 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in United Kingdom. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/labour-force-current-ilo-definition-icls19-15/united-kingdom/

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About this data

Indicator
Labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+)
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
69 places, 708 data points, 2014–2025
Last refreshed

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. The labour force is the sum of all persons of working age who are employed and those who are unemployed. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.