Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia
Europe & Central Asia: Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) was 83.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia stood at 83.3%. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia peaked at 83.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 78.4%, in 1997.
That places Europe & Central Asia 8th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 80.1% | — |
| 1992 | 79.7% | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 79.4% | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 78.9% | -0.7% |
| 1995 | 78.7% | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 78.7% | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 78.4% | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 78.4% | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 78.7% | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 79.0% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 79.1% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 79.6% | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 79.6% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 80.1% | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 80.4% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 80.6% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 81.0% | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 81.2% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 81.1% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 81.0% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 81.0% | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 81.2% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 81.2% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 81.3% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 81.5% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 81.7% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 81.9% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 82.1% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 82.3% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 82.4% | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 82.7% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 83.0% | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 83.2% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 83.3% | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 83.3% | +0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 79.0% | 78.4% | 80.1% | 9 |
| 2000s | 80.2% | 79.0% | 81.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 81.5% | 81.0% | 82.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.0% | 82.4% | 83.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia
- 5 Oman 95.0% compare
- 6 United Arab Emirates 94.9% compare
- 7 Saudi Arabia 94.5% compare
- 8 United States of America 93.9% compare
- 9 Russian Federation 93.7% compare
- 10 Macau, China 93.2% compare
- 11 Belarus 93.2% compare
More work & labour data for Europe & Central Asia
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 51.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 65.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 58.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 35.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 44.5% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 40.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 79.3% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 78.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 66.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 72.8% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia?
- Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Europe & Central Asia was 83.3% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 83.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 78.4% in 1997.
- How does Europe & Central Asia rank for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment)?
- Europe & Central Asia ranks 8th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Europe & Central Asia data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Wage and salaried workers (employees) are those workers who hold the type of jobs defined as "paid employment jobs," where the incumbents hold explicit (written or oral) or implicit employment contracts that give them a basic remuneration that is not directly dependent upon the revenue of the unit for which they work.