In 2016, Thailand’s formal labor force was 38.3 million, or more than 56 percent of the population. Reported unemployment rates are well below full employment, at 1.0 percent overall. Unemployment among youth (defined as those aged 15 to 24) is around 3.5 percent, while it is only 0.5 percent for adults over 25 years old. Well over half the labor force (55.6 percent) earns income in the informal sector, including through self-employment and family labor. However, the proportion of workers in the informal sector has gradually declined, from 62 percent as of 2013, as Thailand experienced a structural transformation from a low productivity agricultural economy to a higher productivity manufacturing and service oriented economy.

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