Difference Between Profession and Employment (With Table)

Profession and Employment are two different things, a professional is someone who is engaged in a specified activity as one’s main paid occupation rather than as an amateur, for example; a professional boxer, whereas later includes two parties, i.e. an employer and an employee.

An employer is a person or organization that employs people, for example; The National Health Service was the largest employer in Europe. On the contrary, an employee is employed for the main purpose of earning wages or salary, especially at a non-executive level.

Profession vs Employment

The difference between profession and employment is the main objective of a profession is to provide service; on the contrary, the objective of employment is to earn income in the form of salary by providing satisfactory work to the employer.


Comparison Table Between Profession and Employment (in Tabular Form)

Parameter of ComparisonProfessionEmployment
CommencementThe profession may/may not commence on the completion of a degree and by getting a certificate of practice.Employment commences only by entering into a service agreement.
QualificationSpecified and professional qualifications as well as training is required.Qualification depends on the nature as well as the demands of the job/employer.
InvestmentLimited capital investment is required.No capital investment is required.
Risk involvedThere is little risk involved in the profession.There is no risk present in employment.
Main objectiveTheir main objective is to provide service.The main purpose of employment is to earn income in the shape of salary.
Code of conductCode of conduct is prescribed by the apex professional bodies.The terms & conditions mentioned in the service contract apply to an employee.
Nature of work involvedIt involves the rendering of services of specialized nature in a personalized way.Involves performing the work activity as directed by the employer/company.


What is Profession?

A profession is converted into an occupation only after the completion of a specialized degree as well as training in the same field. The word “profession” expresses different things to different people. But at its core, it is meant to be an index of expertise.

Traditionally, a “professional” was taken as someone who derives their income from their expertise, talents, as opposed to a hobbyist or layman.

A professional has to have a specialized degree and training in the same field to commence its business. Moreover, they need to follow a specific code of conduct that is laid down by a professional association.


What is Employment?

Employment denotes what you do as a paying job. An example of employment is working as a government employee in a government organization like Indian Railway. The definition of employment is the number of people employed or having jobs.

Employment consists of two parties: the employer and the employee.  The former may be a person, an organization, a company, or any other entity, whereas the latter is the one who is supposed to work as per the work assigned by the employer.

An employee contributes labor as well as expertise to fulfill the main objective of the employer or of the person conducting business and is usually hired to perform specific duties that are boxed into a job.

From a business point of view, an employee is the one who has to work regularly in exchange for compensation in the form of salary.

Main Differences Between Profession and Employment

  1. Meaning: In a profession, the professional is required to possess a special skill set and knowledge to perform the work activity, whereas, in employment, the employee is supposed to fulfill the requirements as per the nature of the job or the demands of the employer.
  2. Qualification: In profession, the professional needs to have special knowledge as well as training in the same field which should be in accordance to the apex professional body, which is the same for all the professionals in that particular field, whereas, in employment, the employee needs to qualify as per the job requirement laid down by the employer.
  3. Earning: The professionals earn their income from the professional fee that is paid to them by their customers/clients for the personalized services, however, the fee may vary from person to person, whereas the employees earn their income in the form of salaries or wages given by the employer in exchange for the services rendered by them.
  4. Capital Requirement: Professionals need initial capital to set up their work,  but as far as employment is concerned, there is no need for any capital investment as the employees have to perform services and in return, they get a salary from the employer.
  5. Rules and Regulations: The professionals are supposed to follow the rules laid down by the apex professional body, whereas the employees are expected to abide by the rules of the respected company or employer as we may say.



Economic activities are divided into three main categories, namely business, employment, and lastly, profession. Although all these may seem similar in the world of corporate business they are markedly different.

A large portion of people consider business and service as two different entities, but within service category one can segregate service into two sub-parts, profession and employment, but the case is the other way around, as there are many differences between the above two categories.


  1. https://illinoislawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Long.pdf
  2. https://ideas.repec.org/a/nos/voprob/2012i1p74-92.html
  3. https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/292803/files/uk-0021.PDF
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