Public Sector Employment in Scotland Statistics for 4th Quarter 2022

Summary

Key points - based on headcount data:

• in December 2022, there were 594,500 people employed in the public sector in Scotland, accounting for 21.9% of total employment^[1].
• in December 2022, employment in the public sector was 5,960 (1.0%) more than in December 2021.
• when major reclassifications are excluded, the public sector increased between December 2021 and December 2022 by around 5,000 (1.0%)^[2].
• of the total 594,500 people employed in the public sector in Scotland, 538,700 (90.6%) were employed in the devolved public sector in December 2022. This was 5,380 (1.0%) more than in December 2021.
• between December 2021 and December 2022, employment in the devolved public sector increased by:
• 2,490 (1.0%) in Local Government
• 3,100 (12.7%) in the Devolved Civil Service
• 360 (2.4%) in Other Public Bodies
• 330 (2.5%) in Public Corporations

Employment in the devolved public sector decreased by:

• 420 (-1.5%) in Police and Fire Related Services
• 190 (-1.5%) in Further Education Colleges
• 300 (-0.2%) in the NHS
• in December 2022, there were 55,800 people employed in the Reserved Public Sector in Scotland. This was 590 (1.1%) more than in December 2021. The Reserved Public Sector accounts for 9.4% of total public sector employment in Scotland.
• between December 2021 and December 2022, employment within the Reserved Public Sector decreased in the reserved Civil Service by 480 (-1.9%). Employment increased in Armed Forces by 330 (3.3%) and in Other Public Sector^[3] by 730 (3.7%).