Local jobless rate at 4.8%
According to the 2019 Spring Labour Force Survey, compiled by the Economics and Statistics Office, the Cayman Islands’ overall unemployment rate increased from 2.8% in the Autumn 2018 report to 3%. However, this is an improvement on the Spring of 2018. Reading from the latest survey, Finance Minister Roy McTaggart revealed that the local population has grown by 5.7% compared to last year, having passed 68,000, with 54% being Caymanian.
The figures suggest that there are now 1,038 Caymanians who do not have a job. And more than half of those without a job who are looking for work have been unemployed for more than six months, the report revealed. Over 690 Caymanians who did not have a job said this was because there was no work available for them. Over 900 job hunters said they had sent resumes to employers but only around 500 said they had registered with the government’s workforce agency.
The latest statistics revealed that the labour force grew between spring 2018 and spring this year by 7.7%, or more than 3,400 people; around 500 of those new workers were Caymanians and the rest were permit holders. There are now 46,215 people with jobs in the local workforce, with 20,474 of them being Caymanians, a growth rate of 3.2% over the spring 2018 estimate.
The document also revealed that well over half of the workforce earns less than $3600pcm and underemployment where workers who could or would like to be working for a full week can find only part-time work is also undermining the figures.
The underemployed accounted for 3.3 percent of all of those in work but 3.9% of working Caymanians said they were underemployed. The group with the highest level of underemployment was those over 65 years of age. Almost 7% of that group who are in work said they want to do more.
In his budget statement, Friday, McTaggart predicted that the overall unemployment rate for 2020 was forecast to be 3.5% and 3.6% in 2021. Government has been pushing the concept that Cayman is now close to full employment. But there indications that may not be the case.
Registration for the NiCE clean-up programme, which was held Wednesday at the Lion’s Centre, has shown an unexpected increase for the winter initiative.
Over 700 people showed up and more than 600 registered for the work which begins at the end of this month for three weeks. The number of people increased significantly on last year when less than 400 people joined the Christmas programme. During the summer the numbers had increased slightly to 480 which would be expected given the lower number of jobs around then for seasonal workers.
But with Cayman now in the high season for tourism officials were hoping to see a fall in numbers again but the increase suggests that either the unemployment figures are going in a different direction than government statistics suggests or people are leaving lowered paid work to take up the government’s temporary but better paid offer.
The latest statistics revealed that the labour force grew between spring 2018 and spring this year by 7.7%, or more than 3,400 people; around 500 of those new workers were Caymanians and the rest were permit holders. There are now 46,215 people with jobs in the local workforce, with 20,474 of them being Caymanians, a growth rate of 3.2% over the spring 2018 estimate.
The document also revealed that well over half of the workforce earns less than $3600pcm and underemployment where workers who could or would like to be working for a full week can find only part-time work is also undermining the figures.
The underemployed accounted for 3.3 percent of all of those in work but 3.9% of working Caymanians said they were underemployed. The group with the highest level of underemployment was those over 65 years of age. Almost 7% of that group who are in work said they want to do more.
In his budget statement, Friday, McTaggart predicted that the overall unemployment rate for 2020 was forecast to be 3.5% and 3.6% in 2021. Government has been pushing the concept that Cayman is now close to full employment. But there indications that may not be the case.
Registration for the NiCE clean-up programme, which was held Wednesday at the Lion’s Centre, has shown an unexpected increase for the winter initiative.
Over 700 people showed up and more than 600 registered for the work which begins at the end of this month for three weeks. The number of people increased significantly on last year when less than 400 people joined the Christmas programme. During the summer the numbers had increased slightly to 480 which would be expected given the lower number of jobs around then for seasonal workers.
But with Cayman now in the high season for tourism officials were hoping to see a fall in numbers again but the increase suggests that either the unemployment figures are going in a different direction than government statistics suggests or people are leaving lowered paid work to take up the government’s temporary but better paid offer.
