Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy
Italy: Public sector employment as a share of total employment was 19.5% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy, 2007–2020
Source: World Bank (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Italy recorded 19.5% for public sector employment as a share of total employment in 2020.
The figure is up 8.8% on the previous year and up 4.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy peaked at 25.4% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 18.0%, in 2019.
That places Italy 39th out of 79 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 25.4% | — |
| 2008 | 21.2% | -16.6% |
| 2009 | 18.2% | -14.2% |
| 2010 | 18.6% | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 19.7% | +5.7% |
| 2012 | 19.4% | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 19.0% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 19.2% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 19.7% | +3.0% |
| 2016 | 19.5% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 20.3% | +4.1% |
| 2018 | 18.6% | -8.3% |
| 2019 | 18.0% | -3.3% |
| 2020 | 19.5% | +8.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 21.6% | 18.2% | 25.4% | 3 |
| 2010s | 19.2% | 18.0% | 20.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.5% | 19.5% | 19.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More work & labour data for Italy
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.6708 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6794 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.662 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -2.03 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.0094 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 44,671 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 10,422 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 17,512 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 17,865 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 35,377 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy?
- Public sector employment as a share of total employment in Italy was 19.5% in 2020, 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 Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 25.4% in 2007.
- What is the lowest public sector employment as a share of total employment recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.0% in 2019.
- How does Italy rank for public sector employment as a share of total employment?
- Italy ranks 39th out of 79 countries with data for 2020.
- Is public sector employment as a share of total employment rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Italy 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 — 14 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.