Bahamas, The: Employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate)

Key figures

Over five years it is down 23.34 percentage points from 70.21% in 2019. Since 1979 it is up 14.55 percentage points from 32.32% in 1979. The World Bank has no value for 24 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2024, Bahamas, The's employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate) fell 20.64 percentage points on 2023 (from 67.51% to 46.87%).

Across the 13 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2023), the average change was +1.48 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.55 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 3.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 20.85 percentage points in 1990 and the biggest yearly fall was 20.64 percentage points in 2024. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Bahamas, The had the 15th highest value of the 22 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Bahamas, The in the 2024 ranking

• Trinidad and Tobago — 12th of 22: 52.34%
• Botswana — 13th of 22: 52.18%
• Fiji — 14th of 22: 51.89%
• Sri Lanka — 16th of 22: 45.3%
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 17th of 22: 45.1%
• Malawi — 18th of 22: 41.94%

What this measures

Employment to population ratio is the proportion of a country's population that is employed.

Limitations: Comparability of employment-to-population ratios across countries is affected most significantly by variations in the definitions used for the employment and population figures. Differences result from age coverage, such as the lower and upper bounds for labor force activity. Estimates of both employment and population are also likely to vary according to whether members of the armed forces are included. Another area with scope for measurement differences has to do with the national treatment of particular groups of workers. The international definition of employment calls for inclusion of all persons who worked for at least one hour during the reference period.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 22 values

Employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate) in nearby economies

• Argentina — 57.63% (2025)
• Barbados — 58.99% (2024)
• Belize — 63.41% (2019)
• Bolivia — 78.05% (2025)
• Brazil — 59.51% (2025)
• Cayman Islands — 79.28% (2015)
• Chile — 56.93% (2025)
• Colombia — 58.58% (2025)
• Costa Rica

More social protection & labor data for Bahamas, The

• Net migration — 935 (2025)
• Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) — 8.43% (2024)
• Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) — 7.87% (2024)
• Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) — 8.15% (2024)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 55.78% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 62.53% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 59.15% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Bahamas, The's employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate)?

46.87% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1979?

It is up 14.55 percentage points from 32.32% in 1979. The highest value was 70.9% in 2001 and the lowest 32.32% in 1979.

How does Bahamas, The rank?

15th highest of 22 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate) unusual for Bahamas, The?

In 2024, Bahamas, The's employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate) fell 20.64 percentage points on 2023 (from 67.51% to 46.87%). Across the 13 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2023), the average change was +1.48 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.55 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 3.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.NE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: September 28, 2026 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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