LU2: Combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15+) by country
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...
What the numbers show
LU2: Combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15+) is currently reported for 90 countries. The highest value is 35.5 in South Africa; the lowest is 1.01 in Thailand.
The median across all reporting countries is 9.25, and the mean is 10.12.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 35.
Over the past decade 28 countries rose and 60 fell. The largest increase was in Cambodia (up 449.3%), and the largest decrease in Uganda (down 73.3%).
LU2: Combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 35.5 | 2024 | up 25.1% | rising |
| 2 | Palestine | 29.88 | 2025 | up 15.0% | rising |
| 3 | Botswana | 29.35 | 2024 | up 13.0% | rising |
| 4 | Rwanda | 23.22 | 2025 | down 37.5% | falling |
| 5 | Ecuador | 20.6 | 2025 | up 48.0% | rising |
| 6 | Argentina | 18.61 | 2025 | up 11.5% | falling |
| 7 | Jordan | 16.85 | 2024 | down 8.5% | falling |
| 8 | Zimbabwe | 16.64 | 2024 | up 246.6% | rising |
| 9 | Turkey | 16.37 | 2025 | up 39.2% | rising |
| 10 | Finland | 15.9 | 2024 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 11 | Uruguay | 15.86 | 2025 | up 11.1% | falling |
| 12 | Spain | 15.79 | 2025 | down 46.3% | rising |
| 13 | Chile | 15.34 | 2025 | down 12.5% | falling |
| 14 | France | 14.93 | 2024 | down 20.8% | rising |
| 15 | Serbia | 13.67 | 2020 | down 39.8% | falling |
| 16 | Iran | 13.43 | 2024 | down 24.6% | falling |
| 17 | Guyana | 13.39 | 2024 | down 47.0% | falling |
| 18 | Panama | 12.7 | 2025 | up 41.8% | rising |
| 19 | Colombia | 12.61 | 2025 | down 15.1% | falling |
| 20 | North Macedonia | 12.56 | 2025 | down 55.1% | falling |
| 21 | Sweden | 12.4 | 2024 | down 0.4% | rising |
| 22 | Montenegro | 12.19 | 2024 | down 39.4% | falling |
| 23 | Barbados | 11.87 | 2024 | down 11.1% | flat |
| 24 | Greece | 11.66 | 2025 | down 62.1% | rising |
| 25 | Ireland | 11.56 | 2024 | down 40.2% | falling |
| 26 | Albania | 11.46 | 2024 | down 63.7% | falling |
| 27 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 11.36 | 2025 | down 63.7% | falling |
| 28 | Angola | 11.14 | 2025 | down 48.3% | falling |
| 29 | Georgia | 10.62 | 2025 | down 37.9% | falling |
| 30 | Guatemala | 10.55 | 2025 | up 40.5% | falling |
| 31 | Denmark | 10.29 | 2024 | up 7.2% | rising |
| 32 | Portugal | 10.25 | 2025 | down 47.8% | rising |
| 33 | Peru | 10.06 | 2025 | up 44.9% | falling |
| 34 | Bolivia | 10.03 | 2025 | up 85.2% | falling |
| 35 | Australia | 9.96 | 2025 | down 39.7% | falling |
| 36 | Ghana | 9.95 | 2024 | up 332.0% | rising |
| 37 | Brazil | 9.93 | 2025 | down 23.3% | flat |
| 38 | Belize | 9.83 | 2017 | — | falling |
| 39 | Belgium | 9.81 | 2024 | down 21.5% | rising |
| 40 | United Kingdom | 9.72 | 2025 | down 16.4% | rising |
| 41 | Netherlands | 9.61 | 2024 | down 31.5% | rising |
| 42 | Luxembourg | 9.55 | 2024 | up 18.0% | rising |
| 43 | Cyprus | 9.4 | 2024 | down 67.3% | volatile |
| 44 | Grenada | 9.39 | 2023 | down 45.8% | falling |
| 45 | Switzerland | 9.3 | 2025 | down 15.2% | rising |
| 46 | Latvia | 9.19 | 2024 | down 36.7% | falling |
| 47 | Honduras | 9.09 | 2025 | down 53.5% | rising |
| 48 | Mauritius | 9.03 | 2019 | down 5.4% | falling |
| 49 | Estonia | 9.01 | 2024 | up 6.6% | falling |
| 50 | Italy | 8.92 | 2024 | down 47.8% | rising |
| 51 | Costa Rica | 8.86 | 2025 | down 52.3% | rising |
| 52 | Lithuania | 8.65 | 2024 | down 35.2% | falling |
| 53 | Zambia | 8.55 | 2024 | up 6.0% | flat |
| 54 | Uganda | 8.5 | 2021 | down 73.3% | volatile |
| 55 | Austria | 8.44 | 2025 | down 17.0% | rising |
| 56 | Indonesia | 8.4 | 2023 | up 5.8% | rising |
| 57 | Canada | 8.21 | 2025 | down 4.5% | falling |
| 58 | Brunei | 7.84 | 2024 | down 26.0% | falling |
| 59 | Norway | 7.52 | 2024 | up 9.9% | rising |
| 60 | Pakistan | 7.34 | 2025 | up 84.0% | volatile |
| 61 | Iceland | 7.2 | 2023 | down 27.1% | rising |
| 62 | Croatia | 6.92 | 2024 | down 65.7% | falling |
| 63 | Dominican Republic | 6.86 | 2025 | down 47.3% | falling |
| 64 | Senegal | 6.86 | 2024 | up 23.4% | rising |
| 65 | Slovenia | 6.82 | 2024 | down 56.2% | rising |
| 66 | Egypt | 6.59 | 2024 | down 51.1% | falling |
| 67 | Mali | 6.56 | 2024 | up 85.1% | rising |
| 68 | Malta | 6.49 | 2024 | down 33.3% | falling |
| 69 | Romania | 6.41 | 2024 | down 32.6% | falling |
| 70 | Slovakia | 6.27 | 2023 | down 59.5% | falling |
| 71 | Sri Lanka | 6.26 | 2024 | up 3.3% | rising |
| 72 | El Salvador | 6.1 | 2025 | down 45.8% | falling |
| 73 | Paraguay | 6.09 | 2017 | up 0.2% | falling |
| 74 | Bangladesh | 6.02 | 2024 | down 0.8% | rising |
| 75 | Mongolia | 5.51 | 2025 | up 0.1% | rising |
| 76 | South Korea | 5.28 | 2025 | down 1.1% | rising |
| 77 | Hungary | 5.19 | 2024 | down 47.0% | falling |
| 78 | Hong Kong | 5.11 | 2025 | up 9.1% | rising |
| 79 | Singapore | 5.09 | 2025 | — | falling |
| 80 | Cambodia | 5.07 | 2025 | up 449.3% | volatile |
| 81 | United States | 5.04 | 2025 | down 17.0% | falling |
| 82 | Germany | 4.6 | 2024 | down 50.7% | falling |
| 83 | Seychelles | 4.53 | 2025 | down 38.7% | falling |
| 84 | Bulgaria | 4.52 | 2024 | down 64.3% | falling |
| 85 | Poland | 3.82 | 2025 | down 60.0% | volatile |
| 86 | Belarus | 3.4 | 2024 | down 47.7% | falling |
| 87 | Czechia | 3.23 | 2024 | down 52.6% | falling |
| 88 | Vietnam | 3.17 | 2024 | down 9.8% | falling |
| 89 | Moldova | 2.06 | 2025 | down 61.4% | falling |
| 90 | Thailand | 1.01 | 2025 | down 22.5% | flat |
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. LU2 represents the share of the labour force that are either in unemployment or time-related underemployment. Data disaggregated by level of education are provided on the highest level of education completed, classified according to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED). Data may have been regrouped from national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCED. For more information, refer to the Education and Mismatch Indicators (EMI) database description.