Employment by status in Japan
Japan: Employment by status was 90.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employment by status in Japan, 1991–2024
Source: International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for employment by status in Japan is 90.8%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment by status in Japan peaked at 90.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 78.5%, in 1991.
That places Japan 17th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 81.3% | 78.5% | 83.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 85.8% | 83.9% | 87.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 89.0% | 87.9% | 90.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 90.3% | 89.6% | 90.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More work & labour data for Japan
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 0 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 0 (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 15-6 82.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 63.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 71.5% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 78.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 55.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 52.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 77.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment by status in Japan?
- Employment by status in Japan was 90.8% 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 Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 90.8% in 2024.
- What is the lowest employment by status recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 78.5% in 1991.
- How does Japan rank for employment by status?
- Japan ranks 17th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employment by status rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan 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.