1,194,800 Jamaicans Employed In January
By: , April 16, 2021
Photo: Yhomo Hutchinson
Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) Director General, Carol Coy, responds to questions from journalists during STATIN’s digital quarterly briefing, on Thursday (April 15).The Full Story
The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) is reporting that the total number of employed persons in January 2021 was 1,194,800.
The number is 74,300 or 5.9 per cent lower than the 1,269,100 persons employed for the corresponding month last year, said the entity’s Director General, Carol Coy.
She was providing details about the January 2021 Labour Force Survey, during STATIN’s quarterly digital briefing on Thursday (April 15).
Ms. Coy said that the unemployment rate for January 2021 was 8.9 per cent, which is some 1.6 percentage points higher than the figure for January 2020.
She noted that the number of employed males decreased by 34,100 or 4.9 per cent to 656,200, while the figure for females fell by 40,200 or 6.9 per cent to 538,600, relative to January 2020.
The Director General noted that the number of unemployed persons rose by 15,700 or 15.6 per cent in January.
She indicated that the number of unemployed males increased by 23.5 per cent to 53,600, while the figure for females climbed by 5,500 or 9.6 per cent to 62,500.
“The unemployment rate for males increased by 1.6 percentage points to 7.6 per cent. For females, the rate increased by 1.4 percentage points to 10.4 per cent, when January 2021 is compared to January 2020,” she added.
In addition, Ms. Coy said the unemployment rate for youth, 14 to 24 years, was 22.8 per cent, some 3.8 percentage points higher than in January 2020.
“The unemployment rate for male youth was 19.6 per cent compared to 17.5 per cent in January 2020. For females, the rate was 26.9 per cent compared to 20.9 per cent in the corresponding quarter of the previous year,” she informed.
Ms. Coy further advised that the number of persons classified as being outside the labour force totalled 775,100 in January, representing an increase of 58,100 persons or 8.1 per cent when compared to January 2020.
The overall labour force totalled 1, 310,900 persons, a decline of 58,600 persons or 4.3 per cent compared to January 2020.
The male labour force decreased by 23,900 or 3.3 per cent to 709,800, while the female complement fell by 34,700 or 5.5 per cent to 601,100.