Employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados
Barbados: Employee compensation as share of government spending was 24.7% in 2016. ▼ Falling
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados, 2003–2016
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
Barbados recorded 24.7% for employee compensation as share of government spending in 2016.
That represents a change of up 1.5% on the previous year and down 22.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados peaked at 45.2% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 24.3%, in 2015.
That places Barbados 80th out of 155 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 45.2% | — |
| 2004 | 41.6% | -8.1% |
| 2005 | 32.7% | -21.4% |
| 2006 | 31.8% | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 29.6% | -7.0% |
| 2008 | 28.2% | -4.8% |
| 2009 | 29.1% | +3.2% |
| 2010 | 28.4% | -2.2% |
| 2011 | 29.7% | +4.5% |
| 2012 | 27.7% | -6.9% |
| 2013 | 27.0% | -2.6% |
| 2014 | 26.3% | -2.4% |
| 2015 | 24.3% | -7.5% |
| 2016 | 24.7% | +1.5% |
Barbados compared with similar countries
- Barbados's 24.7% is above the median for high income countries, which is 18.9%, 1.3× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Barbados's 24.7% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 32.0%, 77% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 34.0% | 28.2% | 45.2% | 7 |
| 2010s | 26.9% | 24.3% | 29.7% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Barbados
- 77 Congo 25.9% compare
- 78 Bosnia and Herzegovina 25.8% compare
- 79 Tajikistan 24.8% compare
- 81 Kuwait 24.2%
- 82 Iceland 23.8% compare
- 83 San Marino 23.5% compare
More work & labour data for Barbados
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.7079 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6853 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.7302 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9854 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.8257 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 114.42 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 165.89 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 97.75 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 96.95 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 194.7 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados?
- Employee compensation as share of government spending in Barbados was 24.7% in 2016, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Barbados?
- The highest recorded value was 45.2% in 2003.
- What is the lowest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Barbados?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.3% in 2015.
- How does Barbados rank for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Barbados ranks 80th out of 155 countries with data for 2016.
- Is employee compensation as share of government spending rising or falling in Barbados?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Barbados data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Employee compensation as share of government spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Employee compensation includes wages, in-kind payments, and government contributions to social insurance schemes such as social security and pensions.