Residents between education, employment and retirement
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of immigrants are in employment, compared with 36.9% of Luxembourg-born people.
61.8 %
Employment trends
One of the essential pieces of information provided by the population census relates to economic activity: how many residents have a job? How many are unemployed? How many are retired or not in paid employment? These are all questions that shed light on the daily life and economic situation of the resident population.
On the one hand, these factors are closely linked to the age distribution of the population.
Secondly, the high level of immigration that Luxembourg is experiencing, with a considerable increase of 131,588 inhabitants between the last two censuses (i.e. +25.7% from 2011 to 2021), is having an impact on the working population, since most immigrants come to Luxembourg to work. Immigration therefore has the effect of attenuating the ageing of Luxembourg's population and also has an impact on activity rates.
What do residents do in their lives?
In 2021, 48.5% of the population is employed, compared to 43.2% in 2011. These figures reflect a strong dynamism in the labour market over the past decade, which is even more pronounced when focusing on the working-age population: indeed, in 2021, the proportion of employed individuals among the working-age population (15-64 years old) is 72.3% compared to 63.8% in 2011. Employed individuals thus make up almost half of the residents. Next come the groups of students and retirees, each representing about one-fifth of the population. While this was already the case in 2011 for the group of students, the proportion of retirees has increased significantly, from 13.2% to 19.5%, indicating an aging resident population.
The opposite trend is observed for individuals primarily engaged in domestic tasks, whose proportion rose to 2.7% in 2021 compared to 8.2% in 2011. Similarly, the proportion of individuals declaring themselves unemployed has decreased, being 2.0% in 2021 compared to 3.2% in 2011. Furthermore, the proportion of individuals living off their assets (retirees) remained stable at a low level (0.3%). Finally, the 2021 census provided the first opportunity to determine the proportion of individuals with permanent disabilities, which stands at 0.7% of the resident population.
Who is more active, men or women?
A considerable gap appears between the two genders. In 2021, the proportion of men engaged in professional activity is 51.9% compared to 45.2% for women. While the proportion of employed women is lower than that of men, their increase between 2011 and 2021 was much more pronounced (+7%) than that of men (+3.6%).
This trend becomes even more apparent when analyzed over 20 years. The graphs showing the proportion of employed women and men across age groups in the last three censuses speak volumes in this regard.
The curves for men show relatively little change. After slight declines in employment rates from 2001 to 2011, there is a slight increase from 2011 to 2021, which is fairly consistent across all age categories, mainly due to immigration.
Graph 1: Percentage of employed men by age in the last three censuses.
The curves for women are much more striking. They reveal a clear increase in the proportion of women employed from 2001 to 2011, and an even more pronounced rise from 2011 to 2021. Immigration plays a role in this, but also the decline in the number of "stay-at-home" women.
Graph 2: Percentage of employed women by age in the last three censuses.
What is the situation for nationals and immigrants?
Depending on the country of birth, the situation regarding economic activity is not identical.
For instance, while 48.5% of the total resident population is employed, this rate is much lower for natives of Luxembourg (36.9%) and significantly higher for individuals born in another country (61.8%). Conversely, students are overrepresented among natives of Luxembourg (29%), whereas they represent only 11.8% of residents born abroad. The difference is less significant for retirees, who constitute 22.2% of native Luxembourgers and 16.4% of those born elsewhere.
The situation of students and retirees will be analyzed in much greater detail in an upcoming publication.
Graph 3: Situation of individuals born in Luxembourg and in other countries.
The employment situation also varies considerably by country of birth. The percentage of people in employment is as high as 69% for residents born in Africa, 66.3% for those born in the Caribbean/South or Central America, 66.2% for residents born in France and 64.1% for those born in Portugal. This is indicative of the high level of immigration that characterises Luxembourg.
Graph 4 : Percentage of employed individuals among the population by country of birth.
By age, immigrants are more likely to work, both among the younger and older age groups, compared to individuals born in Luxembourg (see Graph 6). Thus, the proportion of immigrants employed among those under 27 years old and those over 55 years old is higher than that of natives.
Graph 5: Percentage of employed individuals among nationals and immigrants by age.
In which communes are the most people employed?
Geographic diversity is an important factor in employment: for example, in Luxembourg City, 83.5% of working-age residents (aged 15-64) are employed or seeking employment. Other municipalities with activity rates close to 80% are scattered throughout the country. Conversely, several municipalities have rates below 70%, such as Lenningen in the east and Preizerdaul in the west.
Here, we see a structure very similar to the employment rates, as the highest rates are often associated with major employment centers and urban outskirts, while the lowest rates characterize rural municipalities near the borders.
Map 1: Unemployment rates by municipality of residence in 2021.
Map 2: Activity rates by municipality of residence in 2021.
A forthcoming study will further complement this overview of employment in Luxembourg.
Find out more about residents between education, employment and retirement in Luxembourg
More results
In the coming months, various publications will be produced for the public, but also for the public specialised in demographic issues. At the same time, statistical tables on the various census topics will be published on the Statistics Portal.
Why is the census important?
Census results are essential information for public policy decision-making.
Census data help to forecast needs for land use planning, schools, nurseries, hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, housing, etc.
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