Employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand
New Zealand: Employee compensation as share of government spending was 21.5% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand, 1972–2022
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 21.5% for employee compensation as share of government spending in 2022.
That represents a change of down 6.9% on the previous year and down 9.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand peaked at 27.3% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 17.2%, in 1984.
That places New Zealand 91st out of 155 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.
Employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 25.1% | — |
| 1973 | 25.1% | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 25.3% | +1.0% |
| 1975 | 23.6% | -6.8% |
| 1976 | 23.3% | -1.4% |
| 1977 | 21.8% | -6.2% |
| 1978 | 21.7% | -0.4% |
| 1979 | 22.1% | +1.5% |
| 1980 | 23.2% | +5.2% |
| 1981 | 21.9% | -5.8% |
| 1982 | 19.9% | -8.8% |
| 1983 | 18.8% | -5.6% |
| 1984 | 17.2% | -8.7% |
| 1985 | 17.8% | +3.9% |
| 1986 | 18.0% | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 17.2% | -4.3% |
| 1988 | 17.3% | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 25.4% | +46.4% |
| 2002 | 27.3% | +7.7% |
| 2003 | 24.2% | -11.5% |
| 2004 | 25.4% | +4.9% |
| 2005 | 25.6% | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 25.8% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 25.0% | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 26.5% | +6.2% |
| 2009 | 24.4% | -7.9% |
| 2010 | 24.2% | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 20.5% | -15.1% |
| 2012 | 23.8% | +15.9% |
| 2013 | 24.0% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 24.2% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 24.5% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 24.4% | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 24.3% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 24.3% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 24.9% | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 21.9% | -12.0% |
| 2021 | 23.1% | +5.5% |
| 2022 | 21.5% | -6.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 23.5% | 21.7% | 25.3% | 8 |
| 1980s | 19.0% | 17.2% | 23.2% | 9 |
| 2000s | 25.5% | 24.2% | 27.3% | 9 |
| 2010s | 23.9% | 20.5% | 24.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.2% | 21.5% | 23.1% | 3 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More work & labour data for New Zealand
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.0748 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.0721 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.0776 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.39 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.4877 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 5,200 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 511.04 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 2,819 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 2,994 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 5,812 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand?
- Employee compensation as share of government spending in New Zealand was 21.5% in 2022, 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 New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 27.3% in 2002.
- What is the lowest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.2% in 1984.
- How does New Zealand rank for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- New Zealand ranks 91st out of 155 countries with data for 2022.
- Is employee compensation as share of government spending rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand 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 — 39 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.