ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Belgium

Belgium: ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of was 17.1 % in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
17.1 %
Change on year
down 3.4%
World rank
49th
of 72 countries
All-time high
27.2 %
in 1994
All-time low
14.8 %
in 2021
Years of data
33
1992–2024

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Belgium, 1992–2024

01020301992200820241992: 25.3 %1993: 26.4 %1994: 27.2 %1995: 26.1 %1996: 22.3 %1997: 20.9 %1998: 20.8 %1999: 24 %2000: 20.7 %2001: 22.2 %2002: 19.7 %2003: 22.1 %2004: 17.5 %2005: 22.3 %2006: 18 %2007: 17.2 %2008: 16.4 %2009: 17.8 %2010: 16.8 %2011: 17.7 %2012: 17 %2013: 17.2 %2014: 16.4 %2015: 17 %2016: 16.2 %2017: 15.5 %2018: 16.3 %2019: 15.6 %2020: 17.2 %2021: 14.8 %2022: 19.8 %2023: 17.7 %2024: 17.1 %

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

Belgium recorded 17.1 % for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in 2024.

That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and up 4.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Belgium peaked at 27.2 % in 1994 and was at its lowest, 14.8 %, in 2021.

That places Belgium 49th out of 72 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Belgium, year by year

Annual values for ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value in Belgium, 1992 to 2024.
Year % Change
1992 25.3 %
1993 26.4 % +4.3%
1994 27.2 % +3.0%
1995 26.1 % -4.0%
1996 22.3 % -14.6%
1997 20.9 % -6.3%
1998 20.8 % -0.5%
1999 24 % +15.4%
2000 20.7 % -13.8%
2001 22.2 % +7.2%
2002 19.7 % -11.3%
2003 22.1 % +12.2%
2004 17.5 % -20.8%
2005 22.3 % +27.4%
2006 18 % -19.3%
2007 17.2 % -4.4%
2008 16.4 % -4.7%
2009 17.8 % +8.5%
2010 16.8 % -5.6%
2011 17.7 % +5.4%
2012 17 % -4.0%
2013 17.2 % +1.2%
2014 16.4 % -4.7%
2015 17 % +3.7%
2016 16.2 % -4.7%
2017 15.5 % -4.3%
2018 16.3 % +5.2%
2019 15.6 % -4.3%
2020 17.2 % +10.3%
2021 14.8 % -14.0%
2022 19.8 % +33.8%
2023 17.7 % -10.6%
2024 17.1 % -3.4%

Belgium compared with similar countries

  • Belgium's 17.1 % is above the median for high income countries, which is 16 %, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
  • Belgium's 17.1 % is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 15.9 %, 1.1× the median. (33 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 24.12 % 20.8 % 27.2 % 8
2000s 19.39 % 16.4 % 22.3 % 10
2010s 16.57 % 15.5 % 17.7 % 10
2020s 17.32 % 14.8 % 19.8 % 5

Countries ranked near Belgium

  1. 46 Finland 18.1 % compare
  2. 47 Australia 18 % compare
  3. 48 South Africa 17.9 % compare
  4. 50 Portugal 16.9 % compare
  5. 51 France 16.1 % compare
  6. 52 Slovakia 15.9 % compare

See the full ranking of 78 places →

More economy & growth data for Belgium

All data for Belgium →

Frequently asked questions

What is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Belgium?
Ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Belgium was 17.1 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of recorded in Belgium?
The highest recorded value was 27.2 % in 1994.
What is the lowest ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of recorded in Belgium?
The lowest recorded value was 14.8 % in 2021.
How does Belgium rank for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of?
Belgium ranks 49th out of 72 countries with data for 2024.
Is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of rising or falling in Belgium?
Over the last ten years it is up 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Belgium data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Belgium. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/ilostat-labour-force-survey-share-of-employment-by-status-of-employment-self-employed/belgium/

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About this data

Indicator
ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
78 places, 1,460 data points, 1987–2025
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Employment indicators domain focuses on indicators related to employment in agrifood systems and rural areas. The update is performed yearly, using data from the International Labour Organization (ILO) database that contains a rich set of indicators from a wide range of topics related to labour statistics. The indicators published in FAOSTAT are derived from the labour force statistics (LFS) and rural and urban labour markets (RURURB) databases of the ILOSTAT database.