The bar charts shown demonstrate the proportion of workers in three different economic sectors in 1980 and 2010 in four countries: Germany, Japan, China and the USA. The most notable feature is that the industrial sector was constantly among fields that had the highest percentage of employees.
In 1980, the employment pattern in China was the most exceptional as the percentage of workers in agricultural field was the highest with 70%. Next came Services with approximately 50% and at last place was Industry with a modest 40%. Nonetheless, the share of workers in agricultural sector was lower than that in industry in the other three countries. To be specific, the portion of industrial employees dominated with 60%, 50% and 50% for Germany, the USA and Japan respectively. Next in line were Services and Agriculture, with the Services sector being only 10% lower than the highest position.
After thirty years, in 2010, the percentage of workers in the industrial sector rose dramatically by 20% in the USA, 30% in both Japan and Germany while China’s employment in the industrial sector remained unchanged. Especially in Germany, the Services’ share of employees was then half of Industry’s. Similarly, in Japan and the USA, the ratio of Industry to Services was 8:3 for the former and 7:4 for the latter. Hence, it is evident that the rise in the portion of workers in industrial sector expanded the gap in labor distribution. Conversely, Agriculture remained as the main sector of employment in China constantly with 50%. It was followed by the Industry and Service sectors with 40% and 20% respectively.
In conclusion, the overall trend for the portion of employment in three countries Germany, Japan and the USA favored industrial development with the dominance of the share of workers in this field of 80%,70% and 80% respectively. Whereas, the employment rate in China supported the growth of agriculture with 50% employment share in the respective field.