Labour participation; key figures

Edit table Show description

Labour participation; key figures
Sex Age Highest educational level Periods Labour force and not in the labour force (x 1 000) Labour force Labour force (x 1 000) Labour force Unemployed labour force (x 1 000) Labour force Unemployment rate (%) Labour force Employed labour force Employed labour force (x 1 000) Not in the labour force (x 1 000) Gross labour participation rate (%) Net labour participation rate (%)
Total male and female 15 to 74 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 13,377 10,187 365 3.6 9,822 3,190 76.2 73.4
Total male and female 15 to 74 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 3,492 2,141 134 6.3 2,007 1,351 61.3 57.5
Total male and female 15 to 74 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 4,887 3,810 123 3.2 3,686 1,077 78.0 75.4
Total male and female 15 to 74 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 4,931 4,197 106 2.5 4,091 733 85.1 83.0
Total male and female 15 to 74 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 68 39 1 3.7 37 30 56.7 54.6
Total male and female 15 to 24 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 2,175 1,824 154 8.4 1,670 351 83.9 76.8
Total male and female 15 to 24 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 960 750 86 11.5 664 210 78.1 69.2
Total male and female 15 to 24 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 932 818 52 6.3 767 114 87.8 82.3
Total male and female 15 to 24 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 282 255 16 6.4 239 27 90.5 84.7
Total male and female 15 to 24 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 2 1 0 . 1 1 . .
Total male and female 15 to 64 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 11,426 9,779 352 3.6 9,427 1,647 85.6 82.5
Total male and female 15 to 64 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 2,745 2,017 131 6.5 1,885 728 73.5 68.7
Total male and female 15 to 64 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 4,252 3,679 119 3.2 3,560 573 86.5 83.7
Total male and female 15 to 64 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 4,373 4,047 101 2.5 3,946 325 92.6 90.2
Total male and female 15 to 64 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 57 37 1 3.9 35 20 64.8 62.3
Total male and female 25 to 44 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 4,547 4,098 122 3.0 3,975 449 90.1 87.4
Total male and female 25 to 44 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 608 450 26 5.7 424 157 74.1 69.9
Total male and female 25 to 44 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 1,544 1,383 40 2.9 1,343 161 89.6 87.0
Total male and female 25 to 44 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 2,377 2,251 56 2.5 2,195 126 94.7 92.4
Total male and female 25 to 44 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 19 14 1 . 13 6 . .
Total male and female 25 to 34 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 2,353 2,138 73 3.4 2,065 215 90.9 87.8
Total male and female 25 to 34 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 257 185 14 7.5 172 71 72.2 66.8
Total male and female 25 to 34 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 805 722 22 3.1 700 83 89.7 86.9
Total male and female 25 to 34 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 1,283 1,225 36 2.9 1,189 58 95.5 92.7
Total male and female 25 to 34 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 8 6 1 . 5 3 . .
Total male and female 35 to 44 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 2,195 1,960 50 2.5 1,910 235 89.3 87.0
Total male and female 35 to 44 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 351 265 12 4.5 253 86 75.5 72.1
Total male and female 35 to 44 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 739 661 18 2.7 643 78 89.5 87.1
Total male and female 35 to 44 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 1,094 1,026 20 1.9 1,006 68 93.8 92.0
Total male and female 35 to 44 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 11 8 0 . 8 3 . .
Total male and female 45 to 54 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 2,254 1,973 34 1.7 1,939 281 87.5 86.0
Total male and female 45 to 54 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 453 338 7 2.1 331 115 74.6 73.0
Total male and female 45 to 54 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 840 741 14 1.8 727 99 88.2 86.5
Total male and female 45 to 54 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 941 880 13 1.5 867 61 93.5 92.1
Total male and female 45 to 54 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 20 14 0 . 13 6 . .
Total male and female 45 to 64 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 4,704 3,858 76 2.0 3,782 846 82.0 80.4
Total male and female 45 to 64 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 1,178 817 19 2.4 797 361 69.3 67.7
Total male and female 45 to 64 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 1,777 1,478 27 1.8 1,451 299 83.2 81.6
Total male and female 45 to 64 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 1,714 1,541 29 1.9 1,512 172 89.9 88.2
Total male and female 45 to 64 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 36 22 0 . 22 14 62.2 60.9
Total male and female 45 to 74 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 6,655 4,265 88 2.1 4,177 2,390 64.1 62.8
Total male and female 45 to 74 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 1,925 941 22 2.4 919 984 48.9 47.7
Total male and female 45 to 74 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 2,411 1,609 32 2.0 1,577 803 66.7 65.4
Total male and female 45 to 74 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 2,272 1,691 34 2.0 1,657 580 74.4 72.9
Total male and female 45 to 74 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 47 24 0 . 24 23 51.1 50.1
Total male and female 55 to 64 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 2,450 1,885 42 2.2 1,843 565 76.9 75.2
Total male and female 55 to 64 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 724 479 12 2.5 467 246 66.1 64.4
Total male and female 55 to 64 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 937 737 13 1.8 724 200 78.7 77.3
Total male and female 55 to 64 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 772 661 17 2.5 644 112 85.6 83.4
Total male and female 55 to 64 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 16 8 0 . 8 8 . .
Total male and female 65 to 74 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,952 408 12 3.0 395 1,544 20.9 20.3
Total male and female 65 to 74 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 747 125 3 2.3 122 623 16.7 16.3
Total male and female 65 to 74 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 635 131 5 3.6 126 504 20.6 19.9
Total male and female 65 to 74 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 558 150 5 3.1 145 408 26.9 26.1
Total male and female 65 to 74 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 12 2 0 . 2 10 . .
Total male and female 15 to 19 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,005 797 90 11.3 707 208 79.3 70.3
Total male and female 15 to 19 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 773 596 73 12.3 523 177 77.1 67.6
Total male and female 15 to 19 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 226 197 17 8.6 180 30 86.9 79.4
Total male and female 15 to 19 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 5 5 0 . 4 1 . .
Total male and female 15 to 19 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 0 0 0 . 0 0 . .
Total male and female 20 to 24 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,170 1,027 63 6.2 963 143 87.7 82.3
Total male and female 20 to 24 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 187 154 13 8.4 141 33 82.5 75.6
Total male and female 20 to 24 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 705 621 35 5.6 587 84 88.1 83.2
Total male and female 20 to 24 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 277 250 16 6.4 234 26 90.5 84.7
Total male and female 20 to 24 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 2 1 0 . 1 1 . .
Total male and female 25 to 29 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,159 1,049 40 3.8 1,009 110 90.5 87.1
Total male and female 25 to 29 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 113 78 7 8.8 72 34 69.7 63.6
Total male and female 25 to 29 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 414 370 13 3.5 357 44 89.3 86.2
Total male and female 25 to 29 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 629 599 20 3.3 579 30 95.2 92.0
Total male and female 25 to 29 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 3 2 0 . 2 1 . .
Total male and female 30 to 34 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,194 1,089 33 3.0 1,056 105 91.2 88.5
Total male and female 30 to 34 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 144 107 7 6.6 100 37 74.1 69.3
Total male and female 30 to 34 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 391 352 9 2.7 343 38 90.2 87.8
Total male and female 30 to 34 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 654 626 16 2.5 610 28 95.8 93.3
Total male and female 30 to 34 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 5 4 1 . 3 2 . .
Total male and female 35 to 39 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,129 1,012 28 2.7 984 117 89.6 87.2
Total male and female 35 to 39 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 176 134 8 5.8 126 42 76.1 71.6
Total male and female 35 to 39 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 377 337 9 2.8 327 40 89.3 86.8
Total male and female 35 to 39 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 572 538 10 1.8 528 34 94.1 92.4
Total male and female 35 to 39 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 4 3 0 . 2 1 . .
Total male and female 40 to 44 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,066 948 22 2.3 926 117 89.0 86.9
Total male and female 40 to 44 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 175 131 4 3.1 127 44 74.9 72.6
Total male and female 40 to 44 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 362 324 9 2.6 316 37 89.7 87.4
Total male and female 40 to 44 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 522 488 10 2.0 478 34 93.4 91.6
Total male and female 40 to 44 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 7 5 0 . 5 2 . .
Total male and female 45 to 49 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,038 912 18 2.0 894 126 87.8 86.1
Total male and female 45 to 49 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 193 142 5 3.3 138 51 73.5 71.1
Total male and female 45 to 49 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 369 327 7 2.2 320 42 88.5 86.6
Total male and female 45 to 49 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 464 435 6 1.4 429 29 93.7 92.4
Total male and female 45 to 49 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 12 8 0 . 8 4 . .
Total male and female 50 to 54 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,216 1,061 16 1.5 1,045 155 87.3 85.9
Total male and female 50 to 54 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 260 196 3 1.3 193 64 75.3 74.3
Total male and female 50 to 54 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 471 414 7 1.6 408 57 87.9 86.5
Total male and female 50 to 54 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 477 446 7 1.5 439 32 93.3 91.9
Total male and female 50 to 54 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 7 6 0 . 5 2 . .
Total male and female 55 to 59 years Total 2024 2nd quarter 1,254 1,040 21 2.1 1,018 214 82.9 81.2
Total male and female 55 to 59 years 1 Lower education 2024 2nd quarter 334 239 8 3.2 231 95 71.5 69.2
Total male and female 55 to 59 years 2 Intermediate education 2024 2nd quarter 488 411 6 1.5 405 77 84.2 83.0
Total male and female 55 to 59 years 3 Higher education 2024 2nd quarter 422 385 8 2.1 377 37 91.1 89.3
Total male and female 55 to 59 years Unknown 2024 2nd quarter 9 5 0 . 5 5 . .
Source: CBS.
Explanation of symbols

Table explanation


This table contains quarterly and yearly figures on labour participation in the Netherlands. The population of 15 to 74 years of age (excluding the institutionalized population) is divided into the employed labour force, the unemployed labour force and those not in the labour force. The employed labour force is subdivided on the basis of the professional status, and the average working hours. A division by sex, age and level of education is available.

Data available from: 2013

Status of the figures:
The figures in this table are final.

Changes as of August 14, 2024:
The figures for 2nd quarter 2024 are added.

Changes as of August 17, 2022:
None, this is a new table. This table has been compiled on the basis of the Labor Force Survey (LFS). Due to changes in the research design and the questionnaire of the LFS, the figures for 2021 are not automatically comparable with the figures up to and including 2020. The key figures in this table have therefore been made consistent with the (non-seasonally adjusted) figures in the table Arbeidsdeelname, kerncijfers seizoengecorrigeerd (see section 4), in which the outcomes for the period 2013-2020 have been recalculated to align with the outcomes from 2021. When further detailing the outcomes according to job and personal characteristics, there may nevertheless be differences from 2020 to 2021 as a result of the new method.

When will new figures be released?
New figures will be published on November 14, 2024.

Description topics

Labour force and not in the labour force
People who are part of the employed labour force, the unemployed labour force or who are not in the labour force.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 75 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.

Labour force
People
- who have paid work (employed labour force), or
- who don’t have paid work, recently looked for work and are directly available for it (unemployed labour force).

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.
Labour force
People
- who have paid work (employed labour force), or
- who don’t have paid work, recently looked for work and are directly available for it (unemployed labour force).

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.

Employed labour force
People who have paid work.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.
Employed labour force
People who have paid work.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.
Unemployed labour force
People who don’t have paid work, recently looked for work and are directly available for it.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.

Unemployment rate
The unemployed labour force as a percentage of the (employed and unemployed) labour force.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old.
Not in the labour force
People who don’t have paid work, who haven’t recently looked for work recently or are not directly available for it.

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old. Paid work is regardless of the hours worked.

Gross labour participation rate
The percentage of the (employed and unemployed) labour force in the population (labour force and not in the labour force).

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old.
Net labour participation rate
The percentage of the employed labour force in the population (labour force and not in the labour force).

This definition concerns people who live in the Netherlands (excluding the institutionalized population). The figures are usually presented for the population aged 15 to 74 years old.