Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) was 21.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea stood at 21.3%. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 6.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea peaked at 21.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 18.0%, in 1991.
That places Papua New Guinea 170th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom 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 Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 18.0% | — |
| 1992 | 18.1% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 18.4% | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 18.6% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 18.6% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 18.7% | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 18.7% | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 18.6% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 18.5% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 18.4% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 18.3% | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 18.2% | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 18.1% | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 18.1% | -0.0% |
| 2005 | 18.2% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 18.3% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 18.5% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 18.6% | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 18.7% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 19.0% | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 19.1% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 19.3% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 19.4% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 19.7% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 20.0% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 20.2% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 20.4% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 20.6% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 20.7% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 20.3% | -1.9% |
| 2021 | 20.8% | +2.3% |
| 2022 | 20.9% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 21.0% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 21.2% | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 21.3% | +0.8% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 21.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.4%, 60% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 21.3% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 62.3%, 34% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 18.5% | 18.0% | 18.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 18.4% | 18.1% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.8% | 19.0% | 20.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 20.9% | 20.3% | 21.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More work & labour data for Papua New Guinea
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.0564 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.0424 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.0705 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate 0.4419 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 3.49 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 3,326 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 10,546 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 9,357 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 9,284 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 18,640 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea?
- Wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) in Papua New Guinea was 21.3% 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 Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 21.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.0% in 1991.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment)?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 170th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is wage and salaried workers, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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.