Jamaica's unemployment rate for April this year was 4.5 per cent.

This is 1.5 percentage points lower than in April 2022.

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) is reporting that the decline in the unemployment rate was attributable primarily to an increase in the number of women who joined the labour force.

At a press briefing this morning, Director General of STATIN, Carol Coy, reported that the number of persons employed in April 2023 increased by 3.4 per cent or 43,300 to 1,312,600 people.

She said that more than two-thirds or 68.6 per cent of the increase (29,700) were employed women.

Coy said that a larger number of women were employed, mainly in the occupation group 'Service Workers and Shop and Market Sales Workers' and within the industry group 'Real Estate and other Business Services' including the business process outsourcing sector.

Of the 1,312,600 persons employed in April 2023, some 705,200 were males and 607,400 females.

STATIN revealed that there were 13,600 (2.0 per cent) more males and 29,700 (5.1 per cent) more females in the employed labour force in April this year when compared to April 2022.

Source: The Gleaner Company