Economy > Entrepreneurship > Hiring and Firing > Index ranking: Countries Compared

DEFINITION: Every economy has established a complex system of laws and institutions intended to protect the interests of workers and to guarantee a minimum standard of living for its population. The OECD Job Study and the International Encyclopedia for Labour Law and Industrial Relations identify 4 areas subject to statutory regulation in all countries: employment, social security, industrial relations and occupational health and safety. Doing Business focuses on the regulation of employment, specifically the hiring and firing of workers and the rigidity of working hours. This year data on social security payments by the employer and pension benefits, including the mandatory retirement age, have been added. The data on hiring and firing workers are based on a detailed survey of employment and social security regulations. The survey is completed by local law firms. The employment laws of most countries are available online in the NATLEX database, published by the International Labour Organization. In all cases both actual laws and secondary sources are used to ensure accuracy. Conflicting answers are further checked against 2 additional sources, including a local legal treatise on employment regulation. NOTE: This is a ranking derived from several indicators, 1 being the best (ranked first). The higher the number on this graph, the lower their overall ranking. Invert this graph by clicking on 'Amount' at the top. Consult source for details on methodology.

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#	COUNTRY	AMOUNT	DATE
1	Burkina FasoBurkina Faso	154	2005
2	NigerNiger	153	2005
3	TogoTogo	152	2005
4	Sierra LeoneSierra Leone	151	2005
5	SpainSpain	150	2005
6	RomaniaRomania	149	2005
7	GreeceGreece	148	2005
8	MaliMali	147	2005
9	Congo, Republic of theCongo, Republic of the	146	2005
10	PortugalPortugal	145	2005
11	BrazilBrazil	144	2005
12	Central African RepublicCentral Africa	143	2005
13	FranceFrance	142	2005
14	TurkeyTurkey	141	2005
15	EgyptEgypt	140	2005
16	Democratic Republic of the CongoCongo, DR.	139	2005
17	ItalyItaly	138	2005
18	ParaguayParaguay	137	2005
19	TanzaniaTanzania	136	2005
20	MoldovaMoldova	135	2005
21	ChadChad	134	2005
22	SloveniaSlovenia	133	2005
23	ArgentinaArgentina	132	2005
24	GermanyGermany	131	2005
25	ColombiaColombia	130	2005
26	EcuadorEcuador	129	2005
27	SenegalSenegal	128	2005
28	AlbaniaAlbania	127	2005
29	MauritaniaMauritania	126	2005
30	MexicoMexico	125	2005
31	MoroccoMorocco	124	2005
32	VietnamVietnam	122	2005
33	BeninBenin	121	2005
34	IndonesiaIndonesia	120	2005
35	UkraineUkraine	119	2005
36	MadagascarMadagascar	118	2005
37	AngolaAngola	117	2005
38	IndiaIndia	116	2005
39	PanamaPanama	115	2005
40	Sao Tome and PrincipeSoa Tome+	114	2005
41	MozambiqueMozambique	113	2005
42	IranIran	112	2005
43	EstoniaEstonia	111	2005
	Former French colonies averageFormer French colonies average (profile)	110.39	2005
44	AustriaAustria	110	2005
	Eurozone averageEurozone average (profile)	109.4	2005
45	CroatiaCroatia	109	2005
46	TaiwanTaiwan	108	2005
47	BurundiBurundi	107	2005
48	CameroonCameroon	106	2005
49	South KoreaSouth Korea	105	2005
50	RwandaRwanda	104	2005
51	LatviaLatvia	103	2005
52	IraqIraq	102	2005
53	TunisiaTunisia	101	2005
54	Dominican RepublicDominican Rep.	100	2005
55	Cote d'IvoireCote d'Ivoire	99	2005
56	Sri LankaSri Lanka	98	2005
57	GuineaGuinea	97	2005
	European Union averageEuropean Union average (profile)	96.36	2005
58	AlgeriaAlgeria	96	2005
59	Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina	95	2005
	Emerging markets averageEmerging markets average (profile)	94.12	2005
60	SyriaSyria	94	2005
	NATO countries averageNATO average (profile)	93.81	2005
61	LithuaniaLithuania	93	2005
	Former Spanish colonies averageFormer Spanish colonies average (profile)	92.78	2005
	Eastern Europe averageEastern Europe average (profile)	92.71	2005
62	GuatemalaGuatemala	92	2005
63	PakistanPakistan	91	2005
64	BulgariaBulgaria	90	2005
65	BoliviaBolivia	89	2005
66	El SalvadorEl Salvador	88	2005
67	ChinaChina	87	2005
68	SwedenSweden	86	2005
69	HungaryHungary	85	2005
70	FinlandFinland	84	2005
71	PeruPeru	83	2005
72	PhilippinesPhilippines	82	2005
	Former Soviet republics averageFormer Soviet republics average (profile)	81.92	2005
73	AzerbaijanAzerbaijan	81	2005
74	NicaraguaNicaragua	80	2005
	Religious countries averageReligious countries average (profile)	79.14	2005
75	CambodiaCambodia	79	2005
	failed states averagefailed states average (profile)	79	2005
76	ArmeniaArmenia	78	2005
	Middle Eastern and North Africa averageMiddle Eastern and North Africa average (profile)	77.13	2005
77	SudanSudan	77	2005
78	UzbekistanUzbekistan	76	2005
79	West BankWest Bank	75	2005
80	SlovakiaSlovakia	74	2005
	Non-religious countries averageNon-religious countries average (profile)	73.85	2005
81	United Arab EmiratesUAE	73	2005
	OPEC countries averageOPEC countries average (profile)	72.44	2005
82	Costa RicaCosta Rica	72	2005
	High income OECD countries averageHigh income OECD countries average (profile)	71.2	2005
83	VenezuelaVenezuela	71	2005
84	NetherlandsNetherlands	70	2005
85	NepalNepal	69	2005
86	JordanJordan	68	2005
	Group of 7 countries (G7) averageGroup of 7 countries (G7) average (profile)	68	2005
87	BhutanBhutan	67	2005
88	South AfricaSouth Africa	66	2005
89	GeorgiaGeorgia	65	2005
	South Asia averageSouth Asia average (profile)	64.2	2005
90	PolandPoland	64	2005
91	KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan	63	2005
92	LaosLaos	62	2005
93	Serbia and MontenegroSerbia+	61	2005
	South and Central Asia averageSouth and Central Asia average (profile)	60.09	2005
94	Czech RepublicCzech Republic	60	2005
95	IrelandIreland	59	2005
96	IsraelIsrael	58	2005
97	RussiaRussia	57	2005
98	HondurasHonduras	56	2005
99	BelarusBelarus	55	2005
100	MongoliaMongolia	54	2005
101	YemenYemen	53	2005
102	UruguayUruguay	52	2005
103	LesothoLesotho	51	2005
104	East TimorEast Timor	50	2005
105	LebanonLebanon	49	2005
106	GhanaGhana	48	2005
107	EthiopiaEthiopia	47	2005
108	NorwayNorway	46	2005
109	VanuatuVanuatu	45	2005
110	Puerto RicoPuerto Rico	44	2005
111	BelgiumBelgium	43	2005
	East Asia and Pacific averageEast Asia and Pacific average (profile)	42.24	2005
112	KenyaKenya	42	2005
113	MalawiMalawi	41	2005
114	EritreaEritrea	40	2005
115	JamaicaJamaica	39	2005
116	ZambiaZambia	38	2005
117	ChileChile	37	2005
118	KiribatiKiribati	36	2005
119	MauritiusMauritius	35	2005
120	MalaysiaMalaysia	34	2005
121	OmanOman	33	2005
122	Papua New GuineaPapua NG	32	2005
123	IcelandIceland	31	2005
124	Solomon IslandsSolomon Islands	30	2005
125	KazakhstanKazakhstan	29	2005
126	Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia	28	2005
127	NigeriaNigeria	27	2005
128	KuwaitKuwait	26	2005
129	AfghanistanAfghanistan	25	2005
130	CanadaCanada	24	2005
131	ThailandThailand	23	2005
132	BangladeshBangladesh	22	2005
133	HaitiHaiti	21	2005
134	JapanJapan	20	2005
135	ZimbabweZimbabwe	19	2005
136	FijiFiji	18	2005
137	DenmarkDenmark	17	2005
138	BotswanaBotswana	16	2005
139	United KingdomUnited Kingdom	15	2005
140	AustraliaAustralia	14	2005
141	NamibiaNamibia	13	2005
142	SamoaSamoa	12	2005
143	SwitzerlandSwitzerland	11	2005
144	UgandaUganda	10	2005
145	Marshall IslandsMarshall Isl.	9	2005
146	Federated States of MicronesiaMicronesia	8	2005
147	SingaporeSingapore	7	2005
148	United StatesUnited States	6	2005
149	MaldivesMaldives	5	2005
150	New ZealandNew Zealand	4	2005
151	Hong KongHong Kong	3	2005
152	TongaTonga	2	2005
153	PalauPalau	1	2005

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