Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment was 0.3455 in 2018. ▼ Falling

Latest (2018)
0.3455
Change on year
down 2.0%
World rank
18th
of 59 countries
All-time high
0.3938
in 2005
All-time low
0.3223
in 2015
Years of data
14
2005–2018

Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2005–2018

00.10.20.30.42005201120182005: 0.3942006: 0.3832007: 0.3912008: 0.3382009: 0.3412010: 0.3462011: 0.3442012: 0.3282013: 0.3282014: 0.3262015: 0.3222016: 0.3362017: 0.3522018: 0.346

Source: World Bank.

Analysis

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 0.3455 for public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in 2018.

That represents a change of down 2.0% on the previous year and up 2.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 0.3938 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 0.3223, in 2015.

That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 18th out of 59 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.

Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year

Annual values for Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2005 to 2018.
Year Value Change
2005 0.3938
2006 0.3833 -2.6%
2007 0.3909 +2.0%
2008 0.3382 -13.5%
2009 0.3413 +0.9%
2010 0.3461 +1.4%
2011 0.3438 -0.7%
2012 0.3284 -4.5%
2013 0.3275 -0.3%
2014 0.326 -0.4%
2015 0.3223 -1.2%
2016 0.3364 +4.4%
2017 0.3524 +4.8%
2018 0.3455 -2.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 0.3695 0.3382 0.3938 5
2010s 0.3365 0.3223 0.3524 9

Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

  1. 15 Namibia 0.3556 compare
  2. 16 Argentina 0.3498 compare
  3. 17 Iceland 0.3469 compare
  4. 19 Greece 0.336 compare
  5. 20 France 0.3344 compare
  6. 21 Ireland 0.3323 compare

See the full ranking of 59 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 0.3455 in 2018, according to the World Bank.
What is the highest public sector employment, as a share of formal employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 0.3938 in 2005.
What is the lowest public sector employment, as a share of formal employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 0.3223 in 2015.
How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for public sector employment, as a share of formal employment?
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 18th out of 59 countries with data for 2018.
Is public sector employment, as a share of formal employment rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Statizoid. Retrieved 31 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/public-sector-employment-as-a-share-of-formal-employment/united-kingdom/

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About this data

Indicator
Public sector employment, as a share of formal employment
Source
World Bank
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
59 places, 781 data points, 2000–2021
Last refreshed