Labour · Latin America & Caribbean · Upper-middle income
Colombia: the labour market
Labour force is 27.1m (2025), 25th of 187 in the world and 3rd of 31 in Latin America & Caribbean. Participation rate is 63.4% (2025), 81st of 187 in the world and 15th of 31 in Latin America & Caribbean. Women's participation is 51.6% (2025), 106th of 187 in the world and 18th of 31 in Latin America & Caribbean.
Labour force
Colombia
Participation rate
ColombiaLatin America & CaribbeanUpper-middle incomeWorld
13 indicators
Labour: Colombia in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Latin America & Caribbean; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour forceLabour force, total | 27.1m2025 | 25/187 | 3/31 | 17.8m | 21.8m | 25.2m | +14%since 2015 | 325m | 1.5bn | 3.7bn | |
| Participation rateLabour force participation, % of 15+ | 63.4%2025 | 81/187 | 15/31 | 67.6% | 67.1% | 63.4% | −3.6 ppsince 2015 | 62.7% | 62.7% | 61.0% | |
| Women's participationFemale labour force participation, % of women 15+ | 51.6%2025 | 106/187 | 18/31 | 53.4% | 54.4% | 51.1% | −3.6 ppsince 2015 | 51.4% | 53.4% | 48.9% | |
| Employment rateEmployment to population ratio, 15+ (ILO) | 58.1%2025 | 90/187 | 16/31 | 53.7% | 59.6% | 53.3% | −3.1 ppsince 2015 | 59.3% | 59.5% | 58.1% | |
| UnemploymentUnemployment, % of labour force (ILO) | 8.3%2025 | 55/187 | 10/31 | 20.5% | 11.2% | 16.0% | −0.3 ppsince 2015 | 5.5% | 5.2% | 4.8% | |
| Female unemploymentFemale unemployment, % of female labour force (ILO) | 10.5%2025 | 49/187 | 8/31 | 25.1% | 14.4% | 20.5% | −0.6 ppsince 2015 | 6.5% | 5.1% | 4.9% | |
| Youth unemploymentYouth unemployment, ages 15–24 (ILO) | 17.7%2025 | 65/187 | 15/31 | 37.4% | 22.6% | 27.2% | +0.3 ppsince 2015 | 12.2% | 15.6% | 13.4% | |
| Youth NEET rateYouth not in education, employment or training, % | 22.0%2025 | 64/170 | 10/28 | 29.9%2002 | 23.4% | 27.3%2021 | +0.8 ppsince 2015 | 18.1% | 17.3% | — | |
| Wage workersWage and salaried workers, % of total employment | 54.4%2025 | 124/187 | 27/31 | 57.1% | 50.1% | 52.7% | +1.9 ppsince 2015 | 64.4% | 61.3% | 53.6% | |
| Vulnerable employmentVulnerable employment, % of total employment (ILO) | 43.0%2025 | 61/187 | 5/31 | 39.7% | 45.0% | 44.4% | −0.7 ppsince 2015 | 31.5% | 34.8% | 42.4% | |
| Jobs in agricultureEmployment in agriculture, % of total employment | 14.2%2025 | 95/187 | 12/31 | 19.9% | 17.5% | 15.8% | −1.2 ppsince 2015 | 12.7% | 19.8% | 25.8% | |
| Jobs in industryEmployment in industry, % of total employment | 20.0%2025 | 79/187 | 12/31 | 19.7% | 20.3% | 19.8% | +0.2 ppsince 2015 | 20.5% | 27.7% | 23.7% | |
| Jobs in servicesEmployment in services, % of total employment | 65.8%2025 | 75/187 | 20/31 | 60.5% | 62.2% | 64.4% | +1.1 ppsince 2015 | 66.8% | 52.4% | 50.6% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Unemployment−0.3 pp8.3% in 2025
- Female unemployment−0.6 pp10.5% in 2025
- Wage workers+1.9 pp54.4% in 2025
- Vulnerable employment−0.7 pp43.0% in 2025
Worse than ten years ago
- Women's participation−3.6 pp51.6% in 2025
- Employment rate−3.1 pp58.1% in 2025
- Youth unemployment+0.3 pp17.7% in 2025
- Youth NEET rate+0.8 pp22.0% in 2025
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Colombia and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Colombia. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Colombia | Brazil | Peru | Venezuela | Ecuador | Nicaragua |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour force | 27.1m2025 | 108m2025 | 19.2m2025 | 11.1m2025 | 9.0m2025 | 3.3m2025 |
| Participation rate | 63.4%2025 | 63.1%2025 | 72.9%2025 | 51.9%2025 | 64.5%2025 | 66.1%2025 |
| Women's participation | 51.6%2025 | 53.4%2025 | 65.0%2025 | 37.1%2025 | 52.4%2025 | 51.3%2025 |
| Employment rate | 58.1%2025 | 59.4%2025 | 69.1%2025 | 49.2%2025 | 62.4%2025 | 62.7%2025 |
| Unemployment | 8.3%2025 | 6.0%2025 | 5.1%2025 | 5.3%2025 | 3.3%2025 | 5.0%2025 |
| Female unemployment | 10.5%2025 | 7.3%2025 | 5.8%2025 | 5.8%2025 | 4.1%2025 | 5.2%2025 |
| Youth unemployment | 17.7%2025 | 14.0%2025 | 9.5%2025 | 10.4%2025 | 8.2%2025 | 9.5%2025 |
| Youth NEET rate | 22.0%2025 | 18.7%2025 | 22.8%2022 | 37.1%2020 | 17.7%2025 | 24.5%2014 |
| Wage workers | 54.4%2025 | 69.7%2025 | 48.7%2025 | 59.6%2025 | 47.7%2025 | 55.7%2025 |