Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment was 6.07 million in 2026. ▼ Falling
Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1970–2026
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Analysis
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 6.07 million for economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in 2026.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 14.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 6.89 million in 1979 and was at its lowest, 5.06 million, in 1998.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 57 years of available data.
Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 6.03 million | — |
| 1971 | 6.13 million | +1.7% |
| 1972 | 6.21 million | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 6.30 million | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 6.39 million | +1.5% |
| 1975 | 6.71 million | +5.0% |
| 1976 | 6.76 million | +0.6% |
| 1977 | 6.82 million | +0.9% |
| 1978 | 6.81 million | -0.1% |
| 1979 | 6.89 million | +1.3% |
| 1980 | 6.84 million | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 6.65 million | -2.7% |
| 1982 | 6.50 million | -2.3% |
| 1983 | 6.43 million | -1.0% |
| 1984 | 6.39 million | -0.7% |
| 1985 | 6.08 million | -4.8% |
| 1986 | 6.05 million | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 5.89 million | -2.7% |
| 1988 | 5.84 million | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 5.63 million | -3.7% |
| 1990 | 5.60 million | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 5.41 million | -3.4% |
| 1992 | 5.38 million | -0.7% |
| 1993 | 5.33 million | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 5.23 million | -1.8% |
| 1995 | 5.18 million | -0.9% |
| 1996 | 5.12 million | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 5.07 million | -0.9% |
| 1998 | 5.06 million | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 5.07 million | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 5.14 million | +1.4% |
| 2001 | 5.22 million | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 5.33 million | +2.2% |
| 2003 | 5.49 million | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 5.62 million | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 5.70 million | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 5.69 million | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 5.66 million | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 5.67 million | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 5.75 million | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 5.72 million | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 5.57 million | -2.6% |
| 2012 | 5.44 million | -2.4% |
| 2013 | 5.41 million | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 5.38 million | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 5.33 million | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 5.31 million | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 5.31 million | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 5.33 million | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 5.39 million | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 5.49 million | +1.7% |
| 2021 | 5.63 million | +2.6% |
| 2022 | 5.70 million | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 5.83 million | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 5.95 million | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 6.03 million | +1.3% |
| 2026 | 6.07 million | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.50 million | 6.03 million | 6.89 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.23 million | 5.63 million | 6.84 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.24 million | 5.06 million | 5.60 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.53 million | 5.14 million | 5.75 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.42 million | 5.31 million | 5.72 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.82 million | 5.49 million | 6.07 million | 7 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More economy & growth data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.14 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.42 Percent per annum (2029)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), annual growth rate 14.95 % change on previous year (2025)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0427 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), per capita 2,458 current US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$) 9.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$), per 0.2123 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$), per 12,226 current US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current LCU) 6.75 % change on previous year (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current LCU), per 0.1612 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 6.07 million in 2026, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest economic outlook no 117 — general government employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 6.89 million in 1979.
- What is the lowest economic outlook no 117 — general government employment recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.06 million in 1998.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for economic outlook no 117 — general government employment?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 3rd out of 17 countries with data for 2026.
- Is economic outlook no 117 — general government employment rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.3%. 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 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 57 observations, free to reuse under OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required).
About this data
The OECD Economic Outlook presents the OECD’s analysis of the major global economic trends and prospects for the next two years. The Outlook puts forward a consistent set of projections for output, employment, government spending, prices and current balances based on a review of each member country and of the induced effect on each of them on international developments. OECD (2025), OECD Economic Outlook No 117 (Edition 2025/1) EO117 Database documentation EO117 Last historical points gdp inflation cpi population unemployment real gdp gdp per capita employment OECD Economic Outlook website: https://www.oecd.org/economic-outlook/ Contact : eco.outlook@oecd.org Keywords : Outlook, forecasts, forecast, GDP