As a proportion of total employment in the UK, public sector employment stands at around 20%, or around 5.8 million people.
Public sector workers are more likely to be women and to work part-time than private sector workers. In 2004, 65% of public sector workers were women, compared with 41% of private sector workers. Around 30% of public sector workers worked part-time compared with 24% of private sector workers.
The public sector workforce is older than the private sector workforce. In 2004, around 72% of public sector workers were aged 35 and over compared with 62% of private sector workers.
Public sector workers are also more likely to stay longer with their employers. In 2004, 57% of public sector workers had been with their current employer for five years or more, compared with 45% of private sector workers.
The proportion of workers of black or minority ethnic background was broadly the same, at 7% in both the public and private sectors in 2004. Also around 13% of both public and private sector workers were long-term disabled.
