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

Ireland: ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of was 18.2 % in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
18.2 %
Change on year
down 12.1%
World rank
45th
of 72 countries
All-time high
30.6 %
in 1993
All-time low
18.2 %
in 2024
Years of data
32
1993–2024

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Ireland, 1993–2024

01020301993200820241993: 30.6 %1994: 29.7 %1995: 28.8 %1996: 27.6 %1997: 27 %1998: 25.8 %1999: 24.7 %2000: 24.2 %2001: 23 %2002: 22.5 %2003: 21.6 %2004: 22 %2005: 21.1 %2006: 19.6 %2007: 19.5 %2008: 20.1 %2009: 21.1 %2010: 20.5 %2011: 19.3 %2012: 23.4 %2013: 24.1 %2014: 23.1 %2015: 22.2 %2016: 22.6 %2017: 22 %2018: 21.9 %2019: 20.5 %2020: 19.8 %2021: 19.8 %2022: 18.8 %2023: 20.7 %2024: 18.2 %

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

Analysis

Ireland recorded 18.2 % for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 32 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.1% on the previous year and down 21.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Ireland peaked at 30.6 % in 1993 and was at its lowest, 18.2 %, in 2024.

Ireland ranks 45th of 72 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 32 years of available data.

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

Annual values for ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value in Ireland, 1993 to 2024.
Year % Change
1993 30.6 %
1994 29.7 % -2.9%
1995 28.8 % -3.0%
1996 27.6 % -4.2%
1997 27 % -2.2%
1998 25.8 % -4.4%
1999 24.7 % -4.3%
2000 24.2 % -2.0%
2001 23 % -5.0%
2002 22.5 % -2.2%
2003 21.6 % -4.0%
2004 22 % +1.9%
2005 21.1 % -4.1%
2006 19.6 % -7.1%
2007 19.5 % -0.5%
2008 20.1 % +3.1%
2009 21.1 % +5.0%
2010 20.5 % -2.8%
2011 19.3 % -5.9%
2012 23.4 % +21.2%
2013 24.1 % +3.0%
2014 23.1 % -4.1%
2015 22.2 % -3.9%
2016 22.6 % +1.8%
2017 22 % -2.7%
2018 21.9 % -0.5%
2019 20.5 % -6.4%
2020 19.8 % -3.4%
2021 19.8 % +0.0%
2022 18.8 % -5.1%
2023 20.7 % +10.1%
2024 18.2 % -12.1%

Ireland compared with similar countries

  • Ireland's 18.2 % is above the median for high income countries, which is 16 %, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
  • Ireland's 18.2 % 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 27.74 % 24.7 % 30.6 % 7
2000s 21.47 % 19.5 % 24.2 % 10
2010s 21.96 % 19.3 % 24.1 % 10
2020s 19.46 % 18.2 % 20.7 % 5

Countries ranked near Ireland

  1. 43 Iceland 20.9 % compare
  2. 44 Netherlands (Kingdom of the) 19.5 % compare
  3. 46 Finland 18.1 % compare
  4. 47 Australia 18 % compare
  5. 48 South Africa 17.9 % compare

See the full ranking of 78 places →

More economy & growth data for Ireland

All data for Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Ireland?
Ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Ireland was 18.2 % 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 Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 30.6 % in 1993.
What is the lowest ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of recorded in Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 18.2 % in 2024.
How does Ireland rank for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of?
Ireland ranks 45th out of 72 countries with data for 2024.
Is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of rising or falling in Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is down 21.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Ireland 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 Ireland. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/ilostat-labour-force-survey-share-of-employment-by-status-of-employment-self-employed/ireland/

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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.