Employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece
Greece: Employee compensation as share of government spending was 18.4% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece, 1972–2023
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
In 2023, employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece stood at 18.4%.
That represents a change of up 1.8% on the previous year and up 6.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece peaked at 57.9% in 1972 and was at its lowest, 17.4%, in 2013.
That places Greece 105th out of 155 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 48 years of available data.
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 57.9% | — |
| 1973 | 53.2% | -8.0% |
| 1974 | 52.5% | -1.4% |
| 1975 | 54.7% | +4.2% |
| 1976 | 49.1% | -10.3% |
| 1977 | 49.3% | +0.5% |
| 1978 | 36.2% | -26.6% |
| 1979 | 36.2% | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 33.9% | -6.5% |
| 1981 | 33.5% | -1.3% |
| 1982 | 24.9% | -25.5% |
| 1983 | 30.2% | +21.0% |
| 1984 | 29.9% | -1.0% |
| 1985 | 29.9% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 27.8% | -6.9% |
| 1987 | 25.8% | -7.1% |
| 1988 | 26.0% | +0.8% |
| 1989 | 24.2% | -7.0% |
| 1990 | 22.0% | -9.3% |
| 1995 | 20.9% | -4.9% |
| 1996 | 19.6% | -6.3% |
| 1997 | 22.0% | +12.4% |
| 1998 | 21.6% | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 22.0% | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 22.0% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 22.0% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 23.2% | +5.8% |
| 2003 | 22.6% | -2.8% |
| 2004 | 23.3% | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 23.5% | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 22.8% | -2.8% |
| 2007 | 22.2% | -2.9% |
| 2008 | 21.5% | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 22.4% | +4.2% |
| 2010 | 21.5% | -3.8% |
| 2011 | 20.4% | -5.2% |
| 2012 | 20.2% | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 17.4% | -13.8% |
| 2014 | 21.9% | +25.8% |
| 2015 | 20.6% | -5.9% |
| 2016 | 21.7% | +5.7% |
| 2017 | 21.9% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 21.4% | -2.3% |
| 2019 | 21.4% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 19.4% | -9.5% |
| 2021 | 18.7% | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 18.1% | -3.0% |
| 2023 | 18.4% | +1.8% |
Greece compared with similar countries
- Greece's 18.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 18.9%, 98% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Greece's 18.4% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 16.4%, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 48.6% | 36.2% | 57.9% | 8 |
| 1980s | 28.6% | 24.2% | 33.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 21.3% | 19.6% | 22.0% | 6 |
| 2000s | 22.5% | 21.5% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.8% | 17.4% | 21.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.6% | 18.1% | 19.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Greece
More work & labour data for Greece
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.6524 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6597 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.6447 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -2.26 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate -0.3231 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 8,753 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 1,228 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 3,061 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 3,215 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 6,276 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece?
- Employee compensation as share of government spending in Greece was 18.4% in 2023, 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 Greece?
- The highest recorded value was 57.9% in 1972.
- What is the lowest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Greece?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.4% in 2013.
- How does Greece rank for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Greece ranks 105th out of 155 countries with data for 2023.
- Is employee compensation as share of government spending rising or falling in Greece?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Greece 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 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.