The Government’s Solidarity Programme, which is targeting 50,000 vulnerable Jamaicans for a cash grant of $20,000, is being used to bring these persons inside the safety net of social protection. Speaking with JIS News during the first Solidarity Live Community Engagement session at the Port Maria Anglican Church Hall in St. Mary on August 21, Director of Social Security in...

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., says bridging Jamaica’s productivity gap is critical to safeguarding the nation’s future. Addressing the recent launch of three Jamaica Productivity Centre (JPC) toolkits at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel in St. Andrew, Mr. Charles emphasised that “all of us have to choose efficiency. We have to choose to be productive;...

A total of 1,232 jobseekers were placed in local employment through the Ministry of Labour and Social Security’s Electronic Labour Exchange (ELE) in 2024. The ELE operates a job-matching system that links prospective employers with employees through a web-based medium. According to the Economic and Social Survey Jamaica (ESSJ), 2024, male placements increased by 16.3 per cent to 400, while...

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security has been undertaking a pilot of the digital platform Gov Payout, which will be used to facilitate payments under the $1-billion Solidarity Programme. “We have been doing the pilot for about three to four weeks. We've been able to amend and fix and revise and go through a lot of the testing where...

A total of 22 complaints of discrimination were received and processed by the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD) in 2024, compared to 30 in the previous year, reflecting a reduction of 26.67 per cent. Of the reports received, five were investigated and two were referred to the Disabilities Rights Tribunal. The information is contained in the Economic and...

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security received 5,651 work permit applications in 2024, an increase of 13.3 per cent compared with 2023. Of the applications received, 3,080 were for renewal and 2,571 were for new permits. The information is contained in the Economic and Social Survey Jamaica (ESSJ), 2024, an annual publication of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ)....

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., says the launch of Jamaica’s revolutionary ‘I AM ABLE’ mobile application is a “game changer” for persons with disabilities across the island. Speaking at the official unveiling at Turtle River Park in Ocho Rios on July 29, the Minister said that the new digital platform represents a significant step forward...