France paid employment: arts, entertainment & recreation
France paid employment: arts, entertainment & recreation stood at 627.6 thousand persons in 2025, according to INSEE – Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (BDM). It is one of the indicators in the Annual national accounts table (Value · Annual), with a complete series running from 1959 to 2025. The complete series with an interactive chart, free to download.
This indicator in the Annual national accounts table
| Indicator | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paid employment (persons) | |||||||||||
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 627.6 | 619.5 | 603 | 583.3 | 554.9 | 529 | 551.2 | 550.2 | 558.3 | 556.8 | |
| Activities of households: employers, prod. of goods and serv. (own use) | 138.7 | 134.5 | 138.1 | 137.1 | 140.3 | 137.7 | 143 | 146.1 | 149.3 | 152.2 |
Understanding france paid employment: arts, entertainment & recreation
Measuring salaried personnel engaged in creative pursuits, performing arts, sports facilities management, gambling, and recreational pastimes, this metric captures employment tied directly to leisure industries. Volunteers, unremunerated performers, and independent artists operating without formal corporate payroll status remain outside the scope. Compared to industrial or commercial branches, this metric reflects labor configurations heavily characterized by seasonal contracts and project-based engagements.
Interpreting the series requires caution regarding benchmark revisions that reclassify certain cultural associations or recreational venues into different economic sectors. Analysts should evaluate year-on-year developments rather than sequential movements, given the pronounced seasonal rhythms inherent in entertainment and tourism-linked recreation. Correlating these figures with consumer spending on leisure services helps assess the broader economic health of the cultural sector.
Frequently asked questions
- Does this series include independent artists working without a formal employer?
- No, independent artists without salaried status are excluded, as this metric focuses strictly on paid employees.
- How does seasonality affect arts and entertainment employment counts?
- Many recreational and performance venues operate on seasonal schedules, leading to fluctuations that make year-on-year comparisons more reliable than annual step-overs.
- What types of recreational activities are covered within this branch?
- The classification spans museums, sports facilities, amusement parks, gambling operations, and performing arts organisations.