Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Spain
Spain: Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) was 870.28 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Spain, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Spain recorded 870.28 for potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in 2025.
The figure is down 5.8% on the previous year and down 18.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in Spain peaked at 1,286 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 840.98, in 2023.
Spain ranks 13th of 61 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) in Spain, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 1,237 | — |
| 2015 | 1,070 | -13.5% |
| 2016 | 1,034 | -3.4% |
| 2017 | 955.42 | -7.6% |
| 2018 | 905.72 | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 857 | -5.4% |
| 2020 | 1,286 | +50.1% |
| 2021 | 1,156 | -10.1% |
| 2022 | 940.88 | -18.6% |
| 2023 | 840.98 | -10.6% |
| 2024 | 924.26 | +9.9% |
| 2025 | 870.28 | -5.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1,010 | 857 | 1,237 | 6 |
| 2020s | 1,003 | 840.98 | 1,286 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Spain
- 10 Chile 955.4 compare
- 11 South Korea 955.02 compare
- 12 United Kingdom 949.25 compare
- 14 Russia 838.43 compare
- 15 Sweden 355.93 compare
- 16 Netherlands 266.78 compare
More work & labour data for Spain
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.527 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.5576 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.4982 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -2.05 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate -0.1207 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 39,073 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 5,322 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 17,076 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 16,051 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 33,128 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in Spain?
- Potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) in Spain was 870.28 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 1,286 in 2020.
- What is the lowest potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 840.98 in 2023.
- How does Spain rank for potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19)?
- Spain ranks 13th out of 61 countries with data for 2025.
- Is potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Spain data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
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 includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. The potential labour force refers to persons not in employment who express an interest in this form of work but for whom existing conditions limit their active job search and/or their availability. This group is used to calculate alternative measures of labour underutilization. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.