Law in Charts · Women, work and the law

Women in the labour force, over time

How has the share of women aged 15 and over who work or look for work moved in nine countries?

% of women aged 15 and over in the labour force

Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external d, Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate), via the World Bank. Data for 2000 to 2025. What it counts, how to cite it and the data

At a glance

United States: 58.7% in 2000, 56.3% in 2025.
United Kingdom: 53.7% in 2000, 57.3% in 2025.
Germany: 49.0% in 2000, 55.3% in 2025.
France: 48.5% in 2000, 51.5% in 2025.
India: 34.4% in 2000, 32.4% in 2025.
Brazil: 51.9% in 2000, 53.4% in 2025.
Japan: 49.2% in 2000, 55.9% in 2025.
South Africa: 46.6% in 2000, 49.9% in 2025.
Bulgaria: 44.3% in 2000, 50.4% in 2025.

The countries shown are a selection from different regions and legal traditions, chosen for the length of their data and not for any result.

What it counts

Women aged 15 and over who are working or actively looking for work, as a share of all women of that age (a modelled ILO estimate).

What it leaves out, and how far to trust a comparison

These are modelled estimates, and informal and unpaid work are only partly counted. A line shows that something changed, not why.

Source

ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external d: Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate), via the World Bank, compiled in World Bank, World Development Indicators. Source licence: CC BY 4.0. Data retrieved 2026-10-23 to 2026-10-25.

Cite this chart

Free to use in teaching, articles, reports and slides, with credit. Our compilation is licensed CC BY 4.0; the source publishes the underlying data under its own licence, shown below.

Reference (APA style)

TheLawToKnow. (2026). Women in the labour force, over time [Chart]. Law in Charts. https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/law-in-charts/women-labour-force-trend. Data: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external d, Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate), via the World Bank, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS (data retrieved 2026-10-23 to 2026-10-25).

Short credit for slides and websites

Chart: TheLawToKnow, Law in Charts (https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/law-in-charts/women-labour-force-trend). Data: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external d, via World Bank, World Development Indicators.

BibTeX

@misc{womenlabourforcetrend2026,
  author = {{TheLawToKnow}},
  title = {Women in the labour force, over time},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Law in Charts},
  url = {https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/law-in-charts/women-labour-force-trend},
  note = {Data: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external d, Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate), via the World Bank, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-23 to 2026-10-25.}
}

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Course: Labor and Employment Law

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