Employment by status in Laos
Laos: Employment by status was 22.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employment by status in Laos, 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 Laos is 22.6%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.2% on the previous year and up 19.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment by status in Laos peaked at 22.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 8.1%, in 1991.
Laos ranks 165th of 186 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9.5% | 8.1% | 11.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 14.1% | 11.8% | 16.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.1% | 16.9% | 21.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.0% | 21.4% | 22.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More work & labour data for Laos
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 0 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 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 15-6 68.7% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 87.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 61.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 53.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 54.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 55.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 66.1% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment by status in Laos?
- Employment by status in Laos was 22.6% 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 Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 22.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest employment by status recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.1% in 1991.
- How does Laos rank for employment by status?
- Laos ranks 165th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employment by status rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Laos 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.