The World of Public Employment Services 2026

This publication provides comparative insights on public employment services around the world based on a global survey. Building on its first installment, the 2026 edition provides novel and updated insights on development, challenges, and opportunities faced by public employment services worldwide. This version updates and expands the availability of structured and comparable data and policy information on the organization, structure, and practices of these services. The publication also presents data on and analyzes institutional and policy variations, the digital maturity of services, and the ways in which public employment services respond to shocks and strengthen labor market resilience. Moreover, it presents data and information on the ways in which public employment services can support employment transitions for different population groups, including migrants, and considers the role of partnerships between public employment services and the social economy to support people facing the greatest difficulties to find work. Finally, based on all findings, the publication outlines possible developments in key components of labor market policies, and provides individual country profiles for 78 public employment services from 74 countries.