October 19, 2023

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) reported that the unemployment rate for July 2023 was 4.5%, compared to 6.6% in July 2022. The male unemployment rate declined by 1.8 percentage points to 3.3%, while the female unemployment rate fell by 2.4 percentage points to 5.8%. The number of unemployed persons recorded in July 2023 was 62,200, a decline of 27,500 (30.7%) compared to July 2022. The number of unemployed males was 24,600, a decline of 13,000 (34.6%). The number of unemployed females declined by 14,500 (27.8%) to 37,600.

Data from the survey indicated there were 1,315,100 employed persons, an increase of 47,000 persons relative to July 2022. The number of employed males totalled 709,900, while the number of employed females were 605,200.

The youth (14-24 years) unemployment rate declined by 3.5 percentage points from 16.7% in July 2022 to 13.2% in July 2023. The number of unemployed youths decreased by 9,000 (26.0%) to 25,600.

Notably, in July 2023 the size of the Labour Force rose to 1,377,300, representing an increase of 19,600 (1.4%) additional persons compared to July 2022. The male labour force increased by 8,400 (1.2%) to 734,400 and the female labour force by 11,200 (1.8%) to 624,900.

The largest increase in the Employed Labour Force by occupation group was in ‘Elementary Occupations’. There were 173,800 persons employed in this occupation group in July 2023, 23,500 more persons (15.6%) compared to July 2022. Nearly two-thirds (63.0%) of this increase was in male employment.

The largest increase in the Employed Labour Force by industry group was in ‘Real Estate and Other Business Services’ and ‘Construction’. There were 150,800 persons employed in the industry group “Real Estate and Other Business Services” in July 2023, an increase of 14,000 (10.2%) compared to July 2022. This was followed by the employment of 8,900 (7.0%) more persons in “Construction”. Males accounted for the increase in employment in “Construction”, rising from 121,400 to 130,300 or 7.3 per cent. The largest increase in female employment of 8,900 (11.8%) was in “Real Estate and Other Business Services”, increasing from 75,600 to 84,500 persons.

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