Book Publishing Employee Statistics

Book Publishing Employee Statistics

  • As of 2022, the number of people employed within the US book publishing industry is 72,008.
  • Since 2013, this number has grown by 4,621 employees.
  • This represents a percentage increase in total of 6.86% over the period.
  • Within the United States, the number of book publishing employees is growing by 513.44 per year on average.
  • As of 2021, the number of people employed within the UK book publishing industry is 53,000.
  • The total number of UK book publishing employees has grown by 11,000 since 2013.
  • Based on available diversity data from the Big 5 publishers, the lowest percentage of white employees was at HarperCollins (62%).
  • As of 2021, the average US salary for men in the industry was $80,000.
  • To contrast this, the average US salary for women in the industry was $62,750.
  • Salaries for men within the industry are 27.49% higher than those of women.

Book publishing employment statistics by country

US book publishing employee statistics

  • The number of people employed within the US book publishing industry is 72,008 as of 2022.
  • This number has grown by 4,621 since 2013.
  • A percentage increase of 6.86% was given during the period.
  • The number of US book publishing employees is growing by 513.44 per year on average.
  • Employees within US print publishing subsectors decreased from 2016 to 2017, except book publishing which saw an increase of 12.25%.
  • In 2018, this climbed even higher to 73,108 employees, a figure that is yet to be surpassed as of 2022.
  • Conventions within the industry can make it difficult for younger employees to gain promotions into senior positions.
YearBook publishing employment statistics – USChange
201367,387
201465,189– 3.26%
201564,520– 1.03%
201664,085– 0.67%
201771,935+ 12.25%
201873,108+ 1.63%
201967,822– 7.23%
202068,177+ 0.52%
202172,000+ 5.60%
202272,008+ 0.01%

A graph to show the number of U.S book publishing employees per year is given below:

UK book publishing employee statistics

  • The number of people employed within the UK book publishing industry was 53,000 as of 2021.
  • Since 2013, this number has grown by 11,000.
  • A percentage increase of 26.19% was given for the period.
  • Employees in the UK book publishing industry are growing by 1,375 per year on average.
YearBook publishing employment statistics – UKChange
201342,000
201446,000+ 9.52%
201546,000=
201639,000– 15.22%
201742,000+ 7.69%
201843,000+ 2.38%
201950,000+ 16.28%
202047,000– 6.00%
202153,000+ 12.77%

A graph to show the number of UK book publishing employees per year is given below:

Within the UK, major barriers to the publishing industry exist, due to socio-economic differences, as of 2021:

  • 67% of industry respondents entered publishing from a professional background. 
  • Furthermore, almost 1/5 had been privately educated.
  • However, just 15% of respondents had friends or family working in publishing before starting their career.

Book publishing employment statistics by publisher

For the Big 5 companies with available employee data:

  • HarperCollins is the publisher with the lowest percentage of white employees, at 62%.
  • Penguin Random House had the highest percentage of white employees, at 74%.
  • Macmillan had the largest percentage of female employees at 68.5%.
  • Penguin Random House had the lowest percentage of female employees, at 54%.
  • A range of diversity initiatives have been implemented by the big five publishers since 2020.
  • Primarily these have been focused on hiring Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) officers and using data to track employee information.

Hachette Book Group employee statistics – US

  • 57% of Hachette Book Group employees are women, while 43% are men.
  • 64.6% of employees within Hachette Book Group are white.
  • In 2021, 34% of the company’s contracts with new contributors were with BIPOC (black, indigenous, and people of color) authors and illustrators.
  • In 2019 this was 22%, which shows considerable growth over the two-year period.

A graph is given below to show the percentage of white employees for each publishing house (excluding Simon & Schuster):

HarperCollins employee statistics – US

  • Women make up 57% of HarperCollins employees, with men representing 43%.
  • 62% of employees at HarperCollins are white.
  • Hispanic or Latin American employees make up 13%
  • Black or African American employees make up 12%.
  • The company partners with colleges to host “career days” for students from lesser represented schools.
  • To encourage literacy, HarperCollins commits to supporting persons with print disabilities.

Macmillan employee statistics – US

  • Women represent 68.5% of Macmillan’s employees, men represent 31.5%.
  • 70.5% of Macmillan’s employees are white, as of 2021.
  • Black or African American employees represent 9.8%.
  • Hispanic or Latin American employees represent 9.7%. 
  • Asian employees represent 6.8%.

A graph is given below to show the percentage of female employees for each publishing house (excluding Simon & Schuster):

Simon & Schuster employee statistics – US

  • More than 50% of Simon & Schuster’s new hires were white during 2021.
  • Black or African American persons represented just under 20% of new hires.
  • This number was the same for Hispanic or Latin American new hires.
  • Simon & Schuster implement diversity councils which include employees from all divisions and levels. 
  • Their goal is to create a positive and inclusive working environment for all employees.

Penguin Random House employee statistics – US

  • Women represent 54% of Penguin Random House’s employees, whereas men account for 46%.
  • 74% of Penguin Random House’s employees are white.
  • Between 2019 and 2021, 74.9% of books released by the publisher were authored, illustrated or translated by white US contributors.
  • 6.8% of books had Asian contributors.
  • 6% of books had Black or African American contributors.
  • 5% of books had Hispanic or Latin American contributors.

Book publishing salary statistics

  • Salaries within the industry have remained mostly static since 2013.
  • As of 2021, the average salary for men in the industry was $80,000.
  • To contrast this, the average salary for women in the industry was $62,750.
  • This shows that salaries for men within the industry are 27.49% higher than those of women.
  • Regarding pay rises, nearly 50% of industry respondents reported raises of 3% or less.
  • The biggest problem noted for those under 30 within the industry was the issue of low pay.
  • Career advancement difficulties ranked as the 2nd biggest issue for the age group, with increasing workloads 3rd.

A chart to show average salaries by gender within the book publishing industry is given below:

Book publishing employee diversity

  • 95% of American fiction books published were written by white authors during the period of 1950 – 2018.
  • 75% of publishing industry respondents in 2020 claimed that their employer had made efforts in the last year to increase diversity and equity.
  • However, around just 50% of employees where DEI initiatives had been introduced believed it would result in significant change.
  • There are a large number of black-owned publishing companies within the US and UK that make a significant effort to increase diversity throughout all roles and levels within the publishing industry.

Book publishing employee FAQ

What does a book publisher do?

  • Book publishers work alongside authors to manage the production process of both fiction and non-fiction books.
  • Additionally, book publishers look to gain press coverage of their authors’ work.
  • Promotional events can play a huge part for publishers in increasing the exposure of publications.