Channel Islands Labor Force Participation

The Channel Islands’ labor‑force participation rate has slipped to 56.36 percent in 2025, placing the jurisdiction at 131st in the World Bank’s global ranking and marking an all‑time trough after 36 years of coverage. This decline follows a gradual erosion from the 57.11 percent recorded in 1990 and the peak of 59.96 percent reached in 2010, suggesting that the post‑global‑financial‑crisis recovery was not sustained. The current level is virtually identical to Hong Kong SAR, China, which also records 56.36 percent, and only marginally below New Caledonia’s 56.42 percent, indicating that the Channel Islands now share its participation profile with economies that face similar demographic and structural constraints. The persistent downward trajectory may be amplified by an aging population and limited diversification of the service‑oriented economy; however, targeted policies to boost female and older‑worker engagement could stabilise or modestly reverse the trend in the coming decade.