Potential labour force: ICLS13) … rate previous in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Potential labour force: ICLS13) … rate previous was 5.7 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate in United Kingdom, 1998–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
The most recent figure for potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate in United Kingdom is 5.7, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 5.6% on the previous year and down 17.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate in United Kingdom peaked at 8.2 in 1998 and was at its lowest, 5.1, in 2022.
That places United Kingdom 28th out of 70 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 28 years of available data.
Potential labour force: ICLS13) … rate previous in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 8.2 | — |
| 1999 | 7.9 | -3.7% |
| 2000 | 7.8 | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 7.4 | -5.1% |
| 2002 | 7.5 | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 7.1 | -5.3% |
| 2004 | 6.7 | -5.6% |
| 2005 | 6.4 | -4.5% |
| 2006 | 6.4 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6.5 | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 6.8 | +4.6% |
| 2009 | 7.1 | +4.4% |
| 2010 | 7.4 | +4.2% |
| 2011 | 7.2 | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 7.3 | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 7 | -4.1% |
| 2014 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6.9 | -1.4% |
| 2016 | 6.5 | -5.8% |
| 2017 | 6.1 | -6.2% |
| 2018 | 5.6 | -8.2% |
| 2019 | 5.3 | -5.4% |
| 2020 | 5.8 | +9.4% |
| 2021 | 5.6 | -3.4% |
| 2022 | 5.1 | -8.9% |
| 2023 | 5.2 | +2.0% |
| 2024 | 5.4 | +3.8% |
| 2025 | 5.7 | +5.6% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 5.7 is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.1, 1.4× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 5.7 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.85, 1.2× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.05 | 7.9 | 8.2 | 2 |
| 2000s | 6.97 | 6.4 | 7.8 | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.63 | 5.3 | 7.4 | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.47 | 5.1 | 5.8 | 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 potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate in United Kingdom?
- Potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate in United Kingdom was 5.7 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 8.2 in 1998.
- What is the lowest potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.1 in 2022.
- How does United Kingdom rank for potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate?
- United Kingdom ranks 28th out of 70 countries with data for 2025.
- Is potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers rate (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. The potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers includes those who have been recently searching for a job but are not available to work within a short reference period, those who have not searched recently for a job, but they are available to work within a short reference period, and finally those who do not fall in neither of the previous categories but that wanted employment. The rate refers to this group divided by the sum of the extended labour force and willing non-jobseekers. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.