Spotlight
Public Sector Employment by Sector; Central Gov; UK; HC; SA; Thousands
3,574 000's
2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023

Public sector employment, UK: September 2022
What's in the bulletin?
- Total public sector employment increased in September 2022 compared with the previous quarter and the previous year; the increase from a year ago is partly because of the response of the NHS and the Civil Service to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
- There were an estimated 5.77 million employees in the public sector in September 2022, which was 28,000 (0.5%) more than in June 2022 and 73,000 (1.3%) more than in September 2021.
- Employment in central government was an estimated 3.57 million for September 2022, a rise of 22,000 (0.6%) compared with June 2022, and 74,000 (2.1%) compared with September 2021; the main contributors to this increase were the NHS, the Civil Service, and local authority schools becoming academies.

Is pay higher in the public or private sector?
How has public and private sector pay changed over the last 10 years?
Time series related to Public sector personnel
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3,574 000's 2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023
-
1,998 000's 2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023
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4,887 000's 2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023
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34 2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023
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155 2022 Q3
- Release date:
- 13 December 2022
- Next release:
- 14 March 2023
Datasets related to Public sector personnel
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Public sector employment
Quarterly estimates of UK and regional public sector employment, made up of central government (including Civil Service), local government and public corporations. The estimates also include a breakdown by industry.
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Civil Service statistics
Annual data on Civil Service employment in the UK, including gender, ethnicity, disability status, earnings and location of the Civil Service workforce. This dataset has now been transferred to the Cabinet Office.
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Civil Service statistics data summary tool
An interactive tool allowing users to compare government departments and the Civil Service average, including the split between men and women, full-time and part-time employees, permanent and temporary appointments and regional analysis.
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Public sector employment time series
Seasonally adjusted and non-seasonally adjusted quarterly time series of UK public sector employment, containing the latest estimates.
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Civil Service statistics
Annual data on Civil Service employment in the UK, including gender, ethnicity, disability status, earnings and location of the Civil Service workforce. This dataset has now been transferred to the Cabinet Office.
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Civil Service statistics data summary tool
An interactive tool allowing users to compare government departments and the Civil Service average, including the split between men and women, full-time and part-time employees, permanent and temporary appointments and regional analysis.
Publications related to Public sector personnel
Statistical bulletins
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Public sector employment, UK: September 2022
Estimates of people employed in the public and private sectors in the UK.
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Civil Service statistics, UK: 2018
Employment statistics for the Civil Service population, providing regional analyses, diversity and earnings data.
Articles
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Who works in the public sector?
Using the Annual Population Survey to explore the demographics of the people who work in the public sector.
Methodology related to Public sector personnel
Looking for local statistics?
A handy guide to let you know where to find local statistics.