Public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Public sector employment as a share of total employment was 28.9% in 2018. ▼ Falling
Public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2005–2018
Source: World Bank (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2018, public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland stood at 28.9%.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 33.0% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 27.7%, in 2015.
That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 11th out of 79 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the top quarter.
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 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 33.0% | — |
| 2006 | 32.7% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 32.7% | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 29.6% | -9.6% |
| 2009 | 29.2% | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 30.1% | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 29.6% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 28.5% | -3.6% |
| 2013 | 28.3% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 28.3% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 27.7% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 28.7% | +3.5% |
| 2017 | 29.0% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 28.9% | -0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 31.5% | 29.2% | 33.0% | 5 |
| 2010s | 28.8% | 27.7% | 30.1% | 9 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More work & labour data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- 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)
- 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)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Public sector employment as a share of total employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 28.9% in 2018, 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 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 33.0% in 2005.
- What is the lowest public sector employment as a share of total employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 27.7% in 2015.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for public sector employment as a share of total employment?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 11th out of 79 countries with data for 2018.
- Is public sector employment as a share of total employment rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 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.