Share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay
Uruguay: Share of employment outside the formal sector was 32.3 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay, 2006–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Uruguay recorded 32.3 for share of employment outside the formal sector in 2025.
The figure is up 17.0% on the previous year and up 45.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay peaked at 41.03 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 20.25, in 2021.
That places Uruguay 40th out of 81 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 20 years of available data.
Share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 41.03 | — |
| 2007 | 40.76 | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 39.78 | -2.4% |
| 2009 | 40.53 | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 38.31 | -5.5% |
| 2011 | 35.88 | -6.3% |
| 2012 | 33.99 | -5.3% |
| 2013 | 33.51 | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 21.78 | -35.0% |
| 2015 | 22.15 | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 22.82 | +3.0% |
| 2017 | 22.59 | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 22.45 | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 22.72 | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 20.65 | -9.1% |
| 2021 | 20.25 | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 20.93 | +3.4% |
| 2023 | 31.25 | +49.3% |
| 2024 | 27.6 | -11.7% |
| 2025 | 32.3 | +17.0% |
Uruguay compared with similar countries
- Uruguay's 32.3 is above the median for high income countries, which is 5.33, 6.1× the median. (36 countries reporting)
- Uruguay's 32.3 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 46.78, 69% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | +49.3% | 20.93 | 31.25 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 40.52 | 39.78 | 41.03 | 4 |
| 2010s | 27.62 | 21.78 | 38.31 | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.5 | 20.25 | 32.3 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Uruguay
- 37 Guyana 38.43 compare
- 38 Costa Rica 36.07 compare
- 39 Brazil 34.57 compare
- 41 Mongolia 31.62 compare
- 42 South Africa 30.68 compare
- 43 Palestine, State of 28.76 compare
More work & labour data for Uruguay
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -1.02 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -1 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -1.03 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.72 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.0269 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 3,567 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 95.27 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 1,144 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 1,102 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 2,246 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay?
- Share of employment outside the formal sector in Uruguay was 32.3 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest share of employment outside the formal sector recorded in Uruguay?
- The highest recorded value was 41.03 in 2006.
- What is the lowest share of employment outside the formal sector recorded in Uruguay?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.25 in 2021.
- How does Uruguay rank for share of employment outside the formal sector?
- Uruguay ranks 40th out of 81 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of employment outside the formal sector rising or falling in Uruguay?
- Over the last ten years it is up 45.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Uruguay data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. Data disaggregated by economic activity are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) available for that year. Data may have been regrouped from national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISIC. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.