Montserrat’s first Labour Force Survey has revealed that youth unemployment stands at 20.9% with it being highest among young women at 24.2%.
The Statistics Department of Montserrat (SDM) within the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management (MoFEM) released key indicators from the recently conducted Labour Force Survey (LFS) as at September 2020, in the form of an infographic.
This infographic provides information on the main Labour Force Indicators to include unemployment rate, participation rates, youth unemployment rates, and employment by the major industrial and occupational groupings as guided by The International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) and The International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO).
The infographic provides condensed information on the following areas:
Labour Force / Labour Force Participation: – As at September 2020, Montserrat’s Labour Force stood at 2,727 persons, of these 1,406 males and 1,321 females. The Labour Force comprises of persons 15 years and older who are employed (had a job and worked, had a job but did not work) and unemployed (looked for work or wanting work and was available) during the reference period of the survey during the week of September 20, 2020. The Labour Force Participation rate was 88.7% – 92.5% males and 84.9% females showing that more men participated in the Labour Force in comparison to their female counterparts, a difference of 4 percentage points.
Employment (excluded from infographics attached): –
As at September 2020, the working age population, that is, all persons aged 15 – 64 years was 3,077 persons. The employed labour force comprised of 2,489 persons, 1,254 males and 1,235 females ranging from 17 -79 years.
Unemployment – The overall unemployment rate as at September 2020 for both sexes was 8.7%. In absolute terms, a total of 238 persons reported to have been unemployed, of these, 151 persons were males and 87 females. The unemployment rates for males and females were 10.7% and 6.6% respectively. Additionally, the youth unemployment rate was 20.9%. A further breakdown by sex for youth unemployment rate was 18.7% male and 24.2% female.
The infographic also provides details on the top five occupations and industries on Montserrat. The top five occupations are services & Sales, Technicians and Associate Professions, Elementary Occupations, Professionals, and Craft and Related Trade Workers. The top industries are Public Administration, Defence and Social Security at 28.2%.
The 2020 Labour Force Survey was administered via telephone interviews; an alternate mode of data collection as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A sampled population of 850 households across Montserrat were selected by a systematic random sampling technique. Data was populated on 731 households that is, 86% of the targeted number of households participated in this survey.
In 2018, a Labour Force Census was conducted and labour force indicators were compiled from previous decennial Population and Housing Censuses.
Information retrieved from Labour Force exercises provide timely Labour Force data that can be used in informed planning and decision-making in assessing a nation’s socio-economic standing. A more detailed key findings report of the 2020 Labour Force Survey will be made available to the public by the first week of June 2021. The SDM invites all users of statistics to make use of this infographic publication and any other publications.
Additionally, the SDM is conducting a Labour Day 2021 quiz starting today (Monday May 3, 2021- Labour Day). The quiz, infographic and other information from the SDM is available on the department’s website:
https://statistics.gov.ms/labour-force-survey-2020/5
