Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD): Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) was 54.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) is 54.6%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) peaked at 54.6% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 47.1%, in 1991.
That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 24th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 47.1% | — |
| 1992 | 47.2% | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 47.3% | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 47.5% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 47.6% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 47.9% | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 48.9% | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 48.5% | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 48.8% | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 48.6% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 48.8% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 50.2% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 50.0% | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 49.2% | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 51.2% | +4.0% |
| 2006 | 51.8% | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 51.4% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 51.5% | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 51.6% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 52.1% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 52.1% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 52.5% | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 52.2% | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 52.1% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 52.2% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 52.5% | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 52.7% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 53.4% | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 52.7% | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 53.2% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 54.0% | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 54.6% | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 54.5% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 54.5% | -0.0% |
| 2025 | 54.6% | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 47.8% | 47.1% | 48.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 50.4% | 48.6% | 51.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.5% | 52.1% | 53.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 54.2% | 53.2% | 54.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
More work & labour data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 71.7% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 25.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 17.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 47.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 75.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 19.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 32.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 13.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 50.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 44.9% (2025)
All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) was 54.6% 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- The highest recorded value was 54.6% in 2025.
- What is the lowest wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- The lowest recorded value was 47.1% in 1991.
- How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) rank for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment)?
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) ranks 24th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.