Employment by status in China
China: Employment by status was 61.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employment by status in China, 1991–2024
Source: International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, employment by status in China stood at 61.9%. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment by status in China peaked at 61.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 42.6%, in 1991.
That places China 105th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 45.1% | 42.6% | 47.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 51.4% | 48.3% | 54.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 58.1% | 55.5% | 60.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.2% | 60.5% | 61.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
- 102 Philippines 63.5% compare
- 103 Western Sahara 63.4% compare
- 104 Namibia 63.2% compare
- 106 Lesotho 61.4% compare
- 107 Cape Verde 61.1% compare
- 108 Guatemala 60.7% compare
More work & labour data for China
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 64.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 69.9% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 84.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 59.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 74.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 78.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 69.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment by status in China?
- Employment by status in China was 61.9% in 2024, according to International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest employment by status recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 61.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest employment by status recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.6% in 1991.
- How does China rank for employment by status?
- China ranks 105th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employment by status rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Employment by status. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of people in employment working as employees, as a percentage of total employment.