Employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands
Netherlands: Employee compensation as share of government spending was 7.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands, 1974–2023
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
The most recent figure for employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands is 7.8%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands peaked at 12.7% in 1974 and was at its lowest, 6.7%, in 2011.
Netherlands ranks 148th of 155 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 12.7% | — |
| 1975 | 12.0% | -5.7% |
| 1976 | 11.8% | -1.8% |
| 1977 | 11.4% | -2.8% |
| 1978 | 11.3% | -1.0% |
| 1979 | 11.2% | -1.2% |
| 1980 | 10.8% | -3.3% |
| 1981 | 10.3% | -5.0% |
| 1982 | 9.8% | -4.6% |
| 1983 | 9.4% | -4.0% |
| 1984 | 9.1% | -3.2% |
| 1985 | 9.0% | -1.3% |
| 1986 | 8.8% | -1.7% |
| 1987 | 8.8% | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 9.0% | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 9.1% | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 9.2% | +0.2% |
| 1991 | 8.5% | -7.3% |
| 1992 | 8.5% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 8.5% | -0.0% |
| 1994 | 9.1% | +7.0% |
| 1995 | 6.8% | -25.8% |
| 1996 | 7.5% | +11.0% |
| 1997 | 7.5% | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 7.7% | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 7.7% | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 7.7% | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 7.6% | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 7.7% | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 7.6% | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 7.6% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 7.6% | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 7.1% | -6.8% |
| 2007 | 7.1% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 6.9% | -1.7% |
| 2009 | 6.9% | -1.2% |
| 2010 | 6.8% | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 6.7% | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 6.7% | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 7.6% | +13.3% |
| 2014 | 7.6% | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 7.6% | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 7.8% | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 7.9% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 8.0% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 8.1% | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 7.6% | -6.7% |
| 2021 | 7.5% | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 7.7% | +3.0% |
| 2023 | 7.8% | +1.9% |
Netherlands compared with similar countries
- Netherlands's 7.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 18.9%, 41% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Netherlands's 7.8% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 16.4%, 48% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | -25.8% | 9.1% | 6.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.7% | 11.2% | 12.7% | 6 |
| 1980s | 9.4% | 8.8% | 10.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.1% | 6.8% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.4% | 6.9% | 7.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.5% | 6.7% | 8.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.6% | 7.5% | 7.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Netherlands
- 145 Sweden 9.2% compare
- 146 South Korea 8.8% compare
- 147 United States 8.1% compare
- 149 Finland 7.1% compare
- 150 Switzerland 7.0% compare
- 151 Brazil 6.6% compare
More work & labour data for Netherlands
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 5,256 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 66.71 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 10,535 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.03 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 0.834 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 130,584 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 94,797 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 64.03 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.4 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.1112 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands?
- Employee compensation as share of government spending in Netherlands was 7.8% 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 Netherlands?
- The highest recorded value was 12.7% in 1974.
- What is the lowest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Netherlands?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.7% in 2011.
- How does Netherlands rank for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Netherlands ranks 148th out of 155 countries with data for 2023.
- Is employee compensation as share of government spending rising or falling in Netherlands?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Netherlands 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 — 50 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.