According to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the global ocean economy has consistently supported over 100 million full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs.
According to OECD, between 1995 and 2020, employment in the ocean economy averaged 138 million FTEs, peaking at 151 million in 2006. Despite a sharp drop to 101 million in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, preliminary estimates suggest that job levels are recovering toward pre-2019 levels.
The earliest estimate, from 1995, recorded 122 million jobs, and throughout the 21st century, employment has generally remained above 134 million FTEs.
Which ocean economic activities employ the most people?
Marine and coastal tourism leads ocean economy employment
The largest source of employment in the ocean economy is marine and coastal tourism. This sector includes everything from beach resorts to cruise operators as well as cultural activities. These industries tend to be labour-intensive and less suited to automation, making them global job creators.
On average, marine and coastal tourism accounted for around 60% of global ocean economy full-time equivalent jobs between 1995 and 2020.
Following that sector, the second largest employer is fishing and aquaculture but is still far behind marine and coastal tourism, while the offshore wind and marine renewables are a growing sector, OECD highlights. However, while its output is growing rapidly, global employment levels remain low in comparison to other ocean economic activity groups, reflecting the industry’s nascent stage in many regions.
