Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) in Netherlands
Netherlands: Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) was 4.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Netherlands, 1975–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Netherlands recorded 4.0% for unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in 2025.
That represents a change of up 4.2% on the previous year and down 45.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Netherlands peaked at 17.0% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 2.5%, in 2001.
Netherlands ranks 134th of 181 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 48 years of available data.
Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) in Netherlands, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 9.4% | — |
| 1977 | 8.9% | -5.3% |
| 1979 | 10.2% | +14.8% |
| 1980 | 5.6% | -45.2% |
| 1981 | 11.4% | +102.9% |
| 1982 | 13.8% | +21.2% |
| 1983 | 13.7% | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 12.4% | -9.8% |
| 1986 | 17.0% | +37.2% |
| 1987 | 14.0% | -17.8% |
| 1988 | 12.6% | -9.5% |
| 1989 | 11.8% | -6.6% |
| 1990 | 10.9% | -7.8% |
| 1991 | 9.9% | -9.0% |
| 1992 | 7.8% | -21.3% |
| 1993 | 7.7% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 8.1% | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 8.7% | +7.6% |
| 1996 | 8.1% | -6.3% |
| 1997 | 7.1% | -11.9% |
| 1998 | 5.8% | -18.7% |
| 1999 | 4.9% | -16.5% |
| 2000 | 3.5% | -28.7% |
| 2001 | 2.5% | -27.3% |
| 2002 | 2.9% | +14.8% |
| 2003 | 3.8% | +31.5% |
| 2004 | 5.0% | +32.8% |
| 2005 | 6.9% | +37.2% |
| 2006 | 6.2% | -10.9% |
| 2007 | 5.2% | -15.5% |
| 2008 | 4.5% | -14.0% |
| 2009 | 4.9% | +9.9% |
| 2010 | 5.5% | +12.7% |
| 2011 | 5.4% | -2.4% |
| 2012 | 6.2% | +15.1% |
| 2013 | 7.3% | +17.3% |
| 2014 | 7.7% | +6.1% |
| 2015 | 7.3% | -6.1% |
| 2016 | 6.5% | -10.6% |
| 2017 | 5.3% | -19.2% |
| 2018 | 4.0% | -24.7% |
| 2019 | 3.4% | -15.2% |
| 2020 | 4.0% | +17.8% |
| 2021 | 4.5% | +13.8% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | -15.2% |
| 2023 | 3.7% | -1.8% |
| 2024 | 3.8% | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 4.0% | +4.2% |
Netherlands compared with similar countries
- Netherlands's 4.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.5%, 73% of the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Netherlands's 4.0% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 6.0%, 66% of the median. (53 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) in Netherlands 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | +102.9% | 5.6% | 11.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 9.5% | 8.9% | 10.2% | 3 |
| 1980s | 12.5% | 5.6% | 17.0% | 9 |
| 1990s | 7.9% | 4.9% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 2.5% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.9% | 3.4% | 7.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.0% | 3.7% | 4.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Netherlands
More work & labour data for Netherlands
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 5,256 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 66.71 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 10,535 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.03 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 0.834 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 130,584 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 94,797 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 64.03 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.4 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.1112 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Netherlands?
- Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Netherlands was 4.0% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, female (% of female labor force) recorded in Netherlands?
- The highest recorded value was 17.0% in 1986.
- What is the lowest unemployment, female (% of female labor force) recorded in Netherlands?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.5% in 2001.
- How does Netherlands rank for unemployment, female (% of female labor force)?
- Netherlands ranks 134th out of 181 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, female (% of female labor force) rising or falling in Netherlands?
- Over the last ten years it is down 45.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Netherlands data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.