Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China
Hong Kong, China: Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) was 92.3% in 2025. ▬ Flat
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Hong Kong, China recorded 92.3% for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in 2025. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China peaked at 92.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 88.2%, in 2002.
Hong Kong, China ranks 13th of 187 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 89.3% | — |
| 1992 | 89.5% | +0.2% |
| 1993 | 89.7% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 90.2% | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 90.3% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 90.3% | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 90.8% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 90.7% | -0.0% |
| 1999 | 90.2% | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 90.6% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 89.2% | -1.5% |
| 2002 | 88.2% | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 88.4% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 88.6% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 88.8% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 88.9% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 89.8% | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 89.9% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 89.9% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 90.1% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 89.9% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 89.7% | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 89.9% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 90.9% | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 91.1% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 91.3% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 91.3% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 91.5% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 91.3% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 91.3% | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 91.6% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 91.5% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 91.5% | -0.0% |
| 2024 | 92.2% | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 92.3% | +0.1% |
Hong Kong, China compared with similar countries
- Hong Kong, China's 92.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 86.8%, 1.1× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Hong Kong, China's 92.3% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 62.3%, 1.5× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 90.1% | 89.3% | 90.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 89.2% | 88.2% | 90.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 90.7% | 89.7% | 91.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 91.8% | 91.3% | 92.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Hong Kong, China
- 10 Macau, China 93.2% compare
- 11 Belarus 93.2% compare
- 12 Brunei Darussalam 92.7% compare
- 14 Denmark 92.1% compare
- 15 Germany 91.9% compare
- 16 Channel Islands 91.4% compare
More work & labour data for Hong Kong, China
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 2,981 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 55.13 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 3,663 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 2.78 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.06 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 149,185 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 100,833 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 53.6 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.56 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -1.12 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China?
- Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Hong Kong, China was 92.3% 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 Hong Kong, China?
- The highest recorded value was 92.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Hong Kong, China?
- The lowest recorded value was 88.2% in 2002.
- How does Hong Kong, China rank for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment)?
- Hong Kong, China ranks 13th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Hong Kong, China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Hong Kong, China 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.