Jamaica’s unemployment rate fell to 3.3 per cent in October 2025, according to the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), with 1,413,200 people employed and an estimated 48,800 unemployed. While the figures point to a labour market operating near historic lows, STATIN also indicated that data collection was disrupted in parts of the island following a late-October hurricane, requiring an abridged survey approach in several western parishes and an extended processing period. The numbers, then, are both a milestone and a snapshot—capturing the direction of the economy just before a period of national interruption.
STATIN said employment in October 2025 was largely unchanged compared with October 2024, but still reflected a decline of 3,800 employed persons year-on-year. Unemployment moved the other way: 48,800 unemployed, down from 51,300 in the prior year. At the same time, 693,800 people were recorded as outside the labour force, an increase of 6,300.
Those details matter because Ja…
