Time-related underemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) by country
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...
What the numbers show
Time-related underemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) is currently reported for 48 countries. The highest value is 7,328 in Indonesia; the lowest is 0.8 in Iceland.
The median across all reporting countries is 45.99, and the mean is 379.69.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 9,160.
Over the past decade 13 countries rose and 34 fell. The largest increase was in Zimbabwe (up 14,194.0%), and the largest decrease in Serbia (down 93.8%).
Time-related underemployment: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indonesia | 7,328 | 2023 | up 61.4% | rising |
| 2 | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 1,729 | 2025 | down 13.7% | rising |
| 3 | United States of America | 1,293 | 2025 | up 4.0% | falling |
| 4 | Rwanda | 1,210 | 2025 | down 39.4% | volatile |
| 5 | Peru | 1,070 | 2025 | up 66.6% | rising |
| 6 | Italy | 980.43 | 2023 | down 7.1% | rising |
| 7 | Ghana | 786.32 | 2024 | up 4,819.1% | rising |
| 8 | Spain | 780.38 | 2023 | down 27.6% | rising |
| 9 | France | 732.77 | 2023 | down 13.1% | rising |
| 10 | Costa Rica | 259.25 | 2025 | down 7.0% | falling |
| 11 | Zimbabwe | 255.86 | 2024 | up 14,194.0% | volatile |
| 12 | Zambia | 218.15 | 2024 | up 7.3% | rising |
| 13 | Cambodia | 186.95 | 2025 | up 301.1% | volatile |
| 14 | Sri Lanka | 161.75 | 2024 | down 19.3% | rising |
| 15 | Germany | 153.74 | 2020 | down 84.3% | falling |
| 16 | Greece | 129.47 | 2023 | down 44.9% | rising |
| 17 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 123.6 | 2019 | down 30.7% | falling |
| 18 | Switzerland | 96.94 | 2023 | up 33.0% | rising |
| 19 | Belgium | 91.64 | 2023 | down 46.2% | flat |
| 20 | Ireland | 73.71 | 2020 | down 44.1% | volatile |
| 21 | Portugal | 63.94 | 2023 | down 59.5% | falling |
| 22 | Botswana | 56.07 | 2024 | down 6.5% | flat |
| 23 | Senegal | 53.69 | 2024 | up 24.8% | rising |
| 24 | Poland | 50.94 | 2023 | down 79.4% | falling |
| 25 | Bulgaria | 41.05 | 2023 | down 34.7% | flat |
| 26 | Hungary | 30.79 | 2023 | up 14.4% | falling |
| 27 | Austria | 29.22 | 2023 | down 53.4% | rising |
| 28 | Norway | 27.41 | 2023 | up 1.0% | falling |
| 29 | Sweden | 23.04 | 2023 | down 54.3% | falling |
| 30 | Finland | 22.92 | 2023 | down 0.2% | rising |
| 31 | Palestine, State of | 21.99 | 2022 | — | rising |
| 32 | Romania | 20.45 | 2023 | down 74.0% | falling |
| 33 | Netherlands | 16.75 | 2023 | down 92.1% | volatile |
| 34 | Slovakia | 15.16 | 2023 | down 11.8% | falling |
| 35 | Denmark | 14.57 | 2020 | down 17.5% | falling |
| 36 | Czechia | 12.26 | 2023 | down 51.5% | falling |
| 37 | Croatia | 11.45 | 2020 | up 124.8% | rising |
| 38 | Republic of Moldova | 11.09 | 2025 | down 56.4% | falling |
| 39 | Lithuania | 8.71 | 2023 | down 61.0% | falling |
| 40 | Cyprus | 7.8 | 2023 | down 66.5% | volatile |
| 41 | Latvia | 6.84 | 2023 | down 71.2% | falling |
| 42 | Estonia | 5.41 | 2023 | down 48.4% | falling |
| 43 | Slovenia | 3.2 | 2023 | down 51.1% | volatile |
| 44 | Serbia | 3.17 | 2023 | down 93.8% | volatile |
| 45 | Luxembourg | 2.33 | 2023 | down 59.3% | rising |
| 46 | Mongolia | 1.5 | 2025 | down 80.7% | falling |
| 47 | Seychelles | 1.01 | 2025 | up 18.0% | rising |
| 48 | Iceland | 0.8 | 2020 | down 48.3% | rising |
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. Persons in time-related underemployment comprise all persons in employment, who satisfy the following three criteria during the reference period: a) are willing to work additional hours; b) are available to work additional hours i.e., are ready, within a specified subsequent period, to work additional hours, given opportunities for additional work; and c) worked less than a threshold relating to working time i.e., persons whose hours actually worked in all jobs during the reference period were below a threshold, to be chosen according to national circumstances. For details, refer to the Resolution concerning the measurement of underemployment and inadequate employment situations. The term disability, as defined in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), is used as an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. For measurement purposes, a person with disability is defined as a person who is limited in the kind or amount of activities that he or she can do because of ongoing difficulties due to a long-term physical condition, mental condition or health problem. For more information, refer to the Disability Labour Market Indicators (DLMI) database description.