Biggest Employers in the World

Contrary to the popular belief that Indian Railways is among the top five biggest employers in the world, a new research by the BBC reveals that it is actually at the eighth place in the number of employees. The research includes the world's largest public, private, and government employers by number of employees. As the list comprises of corporate and non-corporate employers, it’s the state departments like U.S. Department of Defense, Chinese military - the People's Liberation Army (PLA) that topped the list. Here is the list of the biggest employers in the world.

10. Hon Hai Precision Industry (Foxconn):

 Ranking 10th on the list is world's largest maker of electronic components, Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known by its trading name, Foxconn. It is a Taiwanese electronics producer and employs 1.2 million people. The multinational electronics manufacturing company makes well-known products like the Apple iPad, iPhone, Kindle, PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360 in its vast factories where hundreds of thousands of people work. The company has been involved in several controversies, mostly relating to how it manages employees in China, where it is the largest private employer. It is also known to be the largest exporter in Greater China.

9. Indian Armed Forces:

The ninth position is taken by the prestigious Indian Armed Forces. It consist of the Army, Navy and Air Force, supported by Paramilitary forces and various inter-service institutions. The Indian Armed Forces have 1.3 million people employed in its active forces and accounts for most of the armed forces being in the army. Further the Indian Armed Forces accounts for 1.15 million reserve personnel along with 2.28 million paramilitary personnel making it one of the world's largest military forces in terms of personnel.

 

8. Indian Railways:

The Indian Railways ranks eighth in terms of largest employer of the world. It has an enormous 1.4 million-strong workforce and has plans to recruit an extra 100,000 staff this year. The Indian Railways transports close to 30 million passengers daily. The Indian Railways became unified in 1951, after combining 42 different Indian railroad companies and presently everything is run by one management. It operates out of the Indian government and oversees most of India's rail transportation. 

7. State Grid Corporation of China:

The State Grid Corporation of China ranks seventh in the list with 1.5 million staff. It is the largest electric power transmission and distribution company in China and in the world and is headquartered in Beijing. It was ranked eighth in the 2010 Fortune Global 500 list of the world's largest companies by revenue and managed to move up by one position in the 2011 Fortune Global 500 list.

6. China National Petroleum Corporation:

China National Petroleum Corporation ranks sixth on the list. It has around 1.6 million employees and operates in 49 countries. The CNPC is the largest integrated oil and gas company in China. The company is headquartered in Beijing. CNPC is the parent of PetroChina, the second highest evaluated company in the world in terms of market capitalization as of June 2010.

5. UK National Health Service:

 The National Health Service plays a pivotal role in England. One of every 23 workers in England is employed by the National Health Service. NHS is the fifth largest in the world when it comes to the number of employees and has over 1.7 million People working under the same banner. 84 percent work in patient care and just 3 percent of the workforce is managers. The publicly funded NHS is the oldest single-payer health system in the world and has the massive workforce is spread across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

4. McDonald's:

The world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurant, McDonald’s is the world's fourth-largest employer with 1.9 million employees. Although, 80 percent of the restaurants are franchises, anyone working in any McDonald’s across the globe wears the uniform and through franchises, nearly 1.5 million of these people are employed by other companies. The company serves around 68 million people daily in 119 countries. Headquarters is at Oak Brook, Illinois, Andrew J. McKenna is the Chairman and James A. Skinne is the Vice Chairman and CEO. 

3. Walmart:

The retail giant, Walmart is the third largest employer in the world with approximately 2.1 million staff, including nearly 200,000 who work for the Asda supermarket chain in the UK. 'Walton's Five and Dime' family owned brand has grown into the largest private employer in the world. The U.S. supermarket chain company has 8,500 stores under 55 different banners in 15 different countries. Forbes Global 2000 list had ranked the company as the world's 18th largest public corporation and the largest public corporation by revenue. Walmart is the biggest private employer in the world. 

2. People's Liberation Army, China:

China’s mighty armed force, People's Liberation Army is the second largest in the number of employees as it has a large base of over 2.3 million active personnel. PLA, established in 1927, is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. PLA, the military arm of the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the world's largest military force and has the largest standing army in the world. President of the People's Republic of China, Hu Jintao is the Chairman of Chairman of Central Military Commission. 

1. U.S. Department of Defense:

With a massive 3.2 million strong workforce, the US Department of Defense topped the list of the biggest employers in the world. Headquarters at the vast Pentagon building in Virginia, Defense Department roughly employs about one percent of the U.S. population. This federal department coordinates and supervises all agencies and functions of the government relating directly to national security and the United States armed forces. The large workforce includes 2.13 million Active Duty soldiers and Civilians and over 1.1 million National Guardsmen and reserve soldiers, adding up to 3.23+ million soldiers and civilians. Leon Panetta is the head of the DoD.
Courtesy: Silicon India