| dc.description.abstract | In this statistical bulletin EUROSTAT presents for the first time harmonised statistics of employees in the services sector analysed by NACE classes. This extension to services has been achieved from 1978 by six Community countries but not yet by Italy, Luxembourg and Ireland, nor by Greece, which has only recently joined the European Community. In the six countries for which data are available the number of employees in the services sector is close to 42 million, whereas corresponding figures for industry and agriculture are 30 million and 1.2 million respectively. It is thus the most important sector of the economy and all the more interesting to analyse as it remains in rapid expansion despite the general recession, whilst industry and agriculture are stagnating or declining. These 42 million employees account for nearly 90% of total employment in the sector. The proportion of women is remarkably high: whereas women do not comprise even a quarter of the employees in industry, there are almost as many women as men employees in services. Furthermore the proportion of women is growing in all countries and in 1980 attained 48% in FR Germany, 50% in France, 38% in the Netherlands, 46% in Belgium, 53% in the United Kingdom and 54% in Denmark. |
