Posted: Thursday, December 14, 2023. 7:43 pm CST.
By Aaron Humes: Employment is often a fluid situation, as detailed by the various statistical categories counted by the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) in the updated 2023 Labour Force Survey.
To be employed, per the SIB definition, is to work a minimum of 35 hours per week for pay or profit, including as a trainee or intern, or to produce goods mostly or only for sale (not for home use), which takes in farmers, peddlers, entertainers and so on. Anyone who works less than 35 hours per week but who wants to work more and is available to do so within two weeks is classified as underemployed, not unemployed (meaning per the Institute to be not working but immediately available to work).
Some 8,300 employed persons are considered underemployed, 4.5 percent of the employed population of more than 183 thousand. About as many females as males are underemployed; collectively they worked an average of 17 hours per week and made $832 per month on average. Most of them worked in so-called ‘Elementary Occupations’ and ‘Services and Sales’ jobs.
Another class of employed are those engaged in informal employment – self-employed persons or those employed at private entities and paid but who are not registered with the Social Security Board and making contributions to it, or with the Belize Companies and Corporate Affairs Registry (BCCAR). This population numbered 37 percent of all employed persons, up from 35.3 percent in the same measurement period in 2022. The largest share of persons in informal employment was in ‘Wholesale and retail trade, Repairs’ (18.5 percent), and ‘Tourism’ (16.3 percent). Further, 62.5 percent were ‘Own account workers’ or ‘self-employed without hired help.’
A third class is described as the ‘potential labour force:’ neither employed nor unemployed, who were (a) looking for a job but not available to work or (b) available to work but not looking for a job. This group numbered 11,678 persons or 8.3 percent of the total labour force. Almost half of females questioned said they had personal and family responsibilities, while nearly four in ten males were engaged in school or training. The total of persons neither employed nor unemployed and considered outside the labour force is 139,931 – most of whom are under 14, attending school, infirm, imprisoned, and so on.
The total labour force, all working persons 14 years and over, is 190,840, of which 3/5ths were male. There was a slight decline in the participation rate in the labour force to 57.7 percent, seen mostly in males who were in training or school. Female participation remained at 44.5 percent as most who did not participate cited personal and family responsibilities.
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The post The underemployed, informally employed, and potential labour force counted by the Statistical Institute appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
Posted: Thursday, December 14, 2023. 7:43 pm CST. By Aaron Humes: Employment is often a fluid situation, as detailed by the various statistical categories counted by
The post The underemployed, informally employed, and potential labour force counted by the Statistical Institute appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
