Local unemployment falls to 6.2%
(CNS): The latest Labour Force Survey suggests that the unemployment rate fell to 6.2% among Caymanians, down from the spring high of over 8% and 7.9% in the autumn of 2014. The overall unemployment rate in the Cayman Islands, which includes expatriates, permanent residents and other non-Caymanians as well as local workers, declined to 4.2%, compared to 4.6% at the same time in 2014.
“The continued decline in the Caymanian unemployment rate from 9.4% in 2013 to 6.2% in 2015 is the outcome of deliberate economic policies and strategies bearing fruit,” said Finance Minister Marco Archer. “This was achieved through cooperation and hard work between the business community, the public sector and the wider society. While the steady decline is commendable, much more can be accomplished as a country if we continue to combine our efforts and rally behind sound public policies toward achieving full employment for Caymanians in the medium term.”
According to the report by the Economics and Statistics Office, 1,209 Caymanians are estimated to be out of work and looking for a job, though the rate of error may mean the number could be as low as 848 or as high as 1,569, and 283 permanent residents were also listed as jobless.
“I recognize that achieving full employment for Caymanians in the medium term may not be easy but it is also not impossible and requires additional training, a positive attitude and a willingness to offer employment opportunities,” Archer said in a release announcing the fall in the jobless total.
Another worrying figure for government, however, is that more than 4.2% of the local workforce is said to underemployed, meaning that they are engaged in part-time or intermittent contract work but are in need of full time jobs. Almost half of the workforce is earning less than $2,400 per month.
The report also indicates an increase in the local population, estimated to be 60,413, with 40,870 of them making up the workforce. Less than 48% of the labour force is Caymanian; permit holders make up 41.7% while permanent residents with the right to work make up the remaining 10%.
Category: Jobs, Local News
I thought this was good news, but it apparently doesn’t suit the commenters’ story of victimhood so it must be a pack of lies. Oh well, back to work!
I was out of work for 10 months yet I didn’t sign up with NWDA so the number can be vary more easily.
From the 700+ people who showed up looking to clean up garbage in our Country, how many think that they thought they were too good to clean up garbage? Or were they just drunk, crack heads looking for a job – yes a job? Or were they expressing a willingness to work? We can’t have our way every time we want to make a blog? Do we think they want to work or not? They came out to sign up to clean up garbage from our streets and communities? Do they want to work or not?
All I can say is that 4 of my friends who were unemployed now have jobs. All caymanian too.
Wake up peole there is a sea of positive changes happening in our islands.
Population growth unemployment down crime down and tremendous development.
And of course this follows on from a large increase in permits, showing that the best way to address local unemployment is to promote growth and abundance by allowing more labour in rather than denying permits and constricting economic growth. Put another way it is proof that the economy is not a zero sum game and backwards Ezzardnomics would not be the way to go.
How much did the PPm pay $$$ you Mr PPM to say that ?? Come now tell the truth?
I think that why the Christmas clean up was all about was to get the unemployed stats down , so that more permits could be issued , and unemployment looks good like they made it to look .
Except the survey they used to estimate unemployment does not include the Christmas clean up period, so that would have no effect whatsoever on the statistics – but hey, why let facts get in the way, right?
I read the report and the survey was conducted in October 2015, well before the Christmas cleanup. So your comment is not based on facts.
As for other posts, let’s give credit where it is due. If the survey had found increased unemployment you would be ready to believe it and would we not hold the elected Government responsible? But now that it shows a further reduction in unemployment you would like to deny the reality or suggest that the elected Government can not take credit for the improvement. Sorry, but you can’t have it both ways. If you hold the elected Government responsible for bad outcomes then you must also give them credit for good outcomes.
The estimated unemployment percentages mean nothing given the large error range. Computing the error unemployment could be as high as 8.0% or as low as 4.4%.
Force all unemployed to register to NWDA in order to collect unemployment pay and you will have meaningful stats. Furthermore, remove from unemployment lists those unemployed who do not meet the unemployment criteria – willing, actively seeking employment and able. Just because one is not employed it does not mean they are unemployed. Some are simply welfare recipients and should not be counted in the labor force nor unemployment statistics.
I thought Aprils fools day was in April…
If an expat is unemployed, why is he/she still here to confuse unemployment numbers.?
For the same reason they included expat data to determine a minimum wage..they are completely clueless..
Perhaps they are married to someone who is still employed, you narrow minded bigot.
Thank you!
Expat employment seems completely necessary here in the Cayman Islands, however if they become unemployed, they should be repatriated, not stay and become part of the statistic.
Hmmmm???!! Is it coincidence that these “statistics” are published just a week after activists gathered under the noses of the politicians to seek attention to the Caymanian unemployment issue? Wonder who CIG hopes to fool with this farce? Seems like Chamber of Commerce bought into this, for their own ends!
Stop importing criminals in our Government and sexual predators on our streets. 23,000 work permits the PPM she be ashame of themselves “for love of country my Foot!”
Yeh right on Taurus and whilst we are at it, lets force all the Caymanians living in the US/UK and elsewhere (except Jeffwy of course, he’s currently tied up) to come home, because if we don’t want expats, we cant expect other countries to take our people, right? Why don’t you write an open letter about that on here, and lets get them to give up their US/UK passports whilst we are at it. Can’t have all that foreign muck, can we? Suspect that will go down really well.
“deliberate policies and strategies”… such as…?
Can anyone point to a single job that can be linked to a PPM “policy” or “strategy”?
For all those that say that the unemployment number is higher because not everyone registers at the NWDA, that is the lamest excuse I have read in a long time. I have absolutely no sympathy for unemployed Caymanians who do not register with the NWDA. I know the NWDA isn’t the most competent organization out there but if you’re really desperate and want to work, you will try ALL your avenues. I know, I’ve been there. Job hunting is a full time job in itself and you don’t get to sit on your butt, complain that no one offers you a job and then whine that the unemployment numbers are excluding you.
It is amazing to see how many posters are living in denial about unemployment despite the figures showing that it is not a problem of any real significance. Take away the ex-cons, the drunks and the crackheads from the figures and what is left appears to be at about a healthy level for an economy. That is especially true since the every employable member of the unemployed could be in work within a month if they wanted to take the many jobs that are on offer.
All that made this report, must have all went to the book cooking college.
Oh great, another fully paid up member of the circular logic brigade.
This again? 5.9% of those are unemployable. The other 0.3% have ostracized themselves on talk radio and social media, they will never work again and only have themselves to blame.
A few hundred people, of whom a majority are practically unemployable, and an underlying unemployment rate of slightly over 4%. What a lot of moaning about nothing. The true unemployment rate, once one takes out the unemployables is so low that it is probably too low. Too low an unemployment rate risks inflation and that would push up the cost of living which the same moaners spend the rest of their time moaning about. Things are just about right.
hey marco…can you you point to any specific government economic policy that has helped?????
a rising tide lifts all boats….etc……
you are lucky to benefit from improving economics internationally and the investment locally by dart…….
Marco is probably the best politician these islands have had in the last 25 years. Spare us your ignorant blogs and go back to McKeewa ville. You can hate the PPM but give the man his dues.
Marco please wake up and stop doing Aldens dirty work.
I’m sorry, but what is it you think he has done precisely to deserve this kind of praise???
He gets credit for balancing the budget when in fact the few actions he has taken have either INCREASED SPENDING or REDUCED REVENUE. In other words if he had done nothing at all we would have a higher surplus than we do.
What has he done to help the fiscal position of these islands? This is not a rhetorical question, if someone can point to something he has done, please do.
The fact is that he was hamstrung fiscally by the FFR. If anyone deserves credit for the surplus it is the FCO and/or the UDP (yes they were corrupt and we don’t want them back but the positive impact on the economy from their tenure in office is undeniable). Yes Marco is as honest as the day is long but that in itself is not praiseworthy, it should be a given.
Meanwhile there is STILL a lack of clean audit opinions or up to date consolidated accounts.
Furthermore as minister for economic development he has overseen a stagnant economy. Name one single initiative that has been started under this government that would have a positive effect on the economy? Again, not a rhetorical question, please name one if you can.
Marco is a hardworking, honest and intelligent man who loves his county and who has done virtually nothing for it.
If we are to give any politician high praise for merely not making things worse and/or not accepting brown bags that is a very low bar indeed.
Finally the truth somebody actually said it. Marco quotes the bible and is soft spoken so that makes him a nice man or great mla in the Caymans. The barometer is so low it’s embarrassing.
Storm a coming!
Unemployed drops to 6.2% and work permits increase 3000 ???? only the PPM mann dey good???
As has been said over and over, the ESO office recorded unemployment at 5.6% as at Sep 2015.
lol..that is my only response to this article..
Do these guys ever come out of their offices and talk to the people particularly the unemployed Caymanians…smh…
Why don’t the unemployed come out and tell govermnent that they are unemployed?
Well some would be too drunk, some would be too high and the rest would need to explain why they are too special to take the jobs that they consider beneath them.
How do you think they did the survey?
Poor Marco..I expected better…gone the way of all PPM…just plain fool, fool…Lord help us!
Sad to see what he’s become Marco Archer is delusional and a now real politician.
The Laborfo cue is made up of 21,000 non caymanians, including permanent residents versus 19.000 caymanians as of December 2015; according to the ESO . go figure where we are going with our unemployment numbers with the immigration statistics saying that there are 23,000 work permits. Geese what a mini.
Aha! The Laborfo cue!! Haven’t seen one of those in years. Nice little snooker trick.
When will ppm understand that not all Caymanian unemployed is registered with NWDA? The numbers are not accurate at any level.
NWDA currebtly have 625 registered but over 1500 persons were at the Lions Centre for the Christmas clean up registration in Dec 2015 while 800 were lucky to get selected so the numbers and stats do not add up.
Why aren’t they registered?
With a population this size it should not be difficult to get accurate employment figures.
When will you realize that unless people register then they are not unemployed. Those that are not registered should receive no benefits. The 1500 was money for Christmas vote buyer. Suspect people took a day off work for that or illegals were employed.
9:43 are you capable of understanding that the ESO does not rely on the NWDA numbers to assess unemployment numbers? They do surveys. If they relied on the NWDA numbers Caymanian unemployment would be stated to be around 3%!
The annual Night of the Living Dead Litter Collection is not about the unemployed. It is about making small payments to those in the grey economy to influence votes.
“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”
“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.”
An admitted error rate of nearly 30% – so the “actual” percentage of Caymanian unemployed could be anywhere between 4.3% – and 8%, even if you accept the premise that the survey has any statistical validity. Well that’s helpful! Why the hell are CIG still using annual surveys to estimate unemployment instead of using the numbers actually registered with NWDA (and making that a requirement for social assistance). Does any other country estimate its unemployed by interviewing a small sample of people at random? You might almost think that they don’t want to know what the real position is!
its there or thereabout “ish”. Lots of “ish”.
Error rate of 30%? Pray tell where did you find that in the report?
“According to the report by the Economics and Statistics Office, 1,209 Caymanians are estimated to be out of work and looking for a job, though the rate of error may mean the number could be as low as 848 or as high as 1,569” – If you get your calculator out you will find that’s a 30% margin for error.