Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil
Brazil: Public sector employment as a share of total employment was 12.5% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil, 2001–2021
Source: World Bank (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Brazil recorded 12.5% for public sector employment as a share of total employment in 2021. That is the highest value across all 16 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil peaked at 12.5% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 11.1%, in 2005.
Brazil ranks 57th of 79 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 16 years of available data.
Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 11.5% | — |
| 2002 | 11.4% | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 11.3% | -0.6% |
| 2004 | 11.2% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 11.1% | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 11.3% | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 11.6% | +2.9% |
| 2008 | 11.5% | -1.1% |
| 2009 | 11.8% | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 12.2% | +3.2% |
| 2012 | 12.2% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 12.1% | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 12.3% | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 12.3% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 12.5% | +1.3% |
| 2021 | 12.5% | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 11.4% | 11.1% | 11.8% | 9 |
| 2010s | 12.3% | 12.1% | 12.5% | 6 |
| 2020s | 12.5% | 12.5% | 12.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Brazil
- 54 Costa Rica 13.0% compare
- 55 United States of America 12.9% compare
- 56 Romania 12.7% compare
- 58 Sri Lanka 11.9% compare
- 59 Paraguay 9.6% compare
- 60 Philippines 9.1% compare
More work & labour data for Brazil
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.7328 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.7065 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.7581 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.74 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.1001 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 215,063 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 17,625 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 82,304 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 81,060 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 163,364 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil?
- Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Brazil was 12.5% in 2021, according to World Bank (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest public sector employment as a share of total employment recorded in Brazil?
- The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 2021.
- What is the lowest public sector employment as a share of total employment recorded in Brazil?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.1% in 2005.
- How does Brazil rank for public sector employment as a share of total employment?
- Brazil ranks 57th out of 79 countries with data for 2021.
- Is public sector employment as a share of total employment rising or falling in Brazil?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Brazil data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Public sector employment as a share of total employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 16 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of all employed people who are paid employees of the public sector, including government, the armed forces, public services, and state-owned enterprises.