Updated | Opposition's unemployment claims were ‘untrue’ - Government

Labour Force up by 1.9% over first quarter of 2013, unemployment remains at 6%

Labour Force Survey estimates indicate an increase of 1.9% in employment in the first quarter of this year when compared with the corresponding period in 2013, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said today.

Employment stood at 175,630 accounting for almost half the population aged 15 and over.

Unemployment remained at 6%. The number of unemployed persons stood at 11,225 while inactive persons totaled 167,151, a 0.5% decrease. 

Welcoming the latest figures, the government insisted that the increase in employment confirms that Malta’s economy is moving in the right direction.

Taking umbrage at the Opposition’s pre-electoral claims that Malta’s unemployment rates will increase to 7%, the government argued that the PN’s claims were untrue.

“Contrary to the Opposition’s claims, the unemployment rates remained stable.”

“The statistics clearly show that the Opposition’s statements were untrue. The last time that Malta’s unemployment rates stood at 7% was in 2010 under the previous administration,” the government claimed.

The Labour Force Survey also indicated that the activity rate for the quarter under review was estimated at 64.8 per cent.

The activity rates among men and women stood at 79.3% and 49.8%, up by 0.8% and 1.3% respectively.

The highest activity rate was recorded among persons aged 25-54, while the lowest was recorded among persons aged 55-64. The rate among youths aged between 15 and 24 stood at 48.7%, a slight decrease of 0.7% when compared with the first quarter of 2013.

Unemployment for the first quarter stood at 6.0%. Statistics have also revealed that youth unemployment increased to 14.3%, up by 2.5%.

The largest share of unemployed persons was recorded among persons aged 25 and over. Among unemployed persons, 48.2 per cent stated that they had been seeking work for at least 12 months.

On average, 61 out of a 100 persons aged between 15 and 64 were employed – a 0.9% increase when compared with the corresponding period in 2013. The highest employment rate was recorded among persons aged between 25 and 54, at 75.1%.

The average gross annual salary of employees for the first quarter was estimated at €16,036. This amount refers to the gross annual basic salary and excludes extra payments such as overtime, bonuses and allowances, as explained in the methodological notes.

Average annual salaries varied from €27,561 among managers to €11,312 among elementary staff.