Saint Lucia has recorded another significant improvement in its labour market, with the national unemployment rate declining to 10.1% in the second quarter of 2026, covering the period April to June.
The latest Labour Force Survey from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) confirms that unemployment fell from 12.1% in the first quarter of 2026 to 10.1% in the second quarter. The improvement is even more pronounced when compared with the corresponding period last year, when unemployment stood at 13.4%. This represents a 3.3 percentage-point reduction in unemployment year-on-year.
The labour market also recorded an increase in the number of people employed. Total employment reached 99,528 persons in Q2 2026, an increase of 691 persons over the previous quarter and 1,677 compared with Q2 2025. The employment rate consequently increased to 89.9% of the labour force, compared with 87.9% in the first quarter and 86.6% one year earlier.
There has also been encouraging progress among young people. Youth unemployment fell to 15.5% in Q2 2026, down from 18.5% in the previous quarter and 24.1% in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
The Government of Saint Lucia welcomes these results as another encouraging indication of the continued strengthening of the economy and the expansion of employment opportunities for Saint Lucians.
When Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pierre assumed office in 2021, a central priority of his Administration was to rebuild economic confidence and create an environment in which businesses could expand, new investments could take root and more Saint Lucians could access sustainable employment.
Over the last five years, the Pierre-led Administration has pursued people-centred economic policies aimed at supporting local businesses, attracting foreign direct investment, strengthening key productive sectors and accelerating public infrastructure development.
The impact of this approach can be seen across Saint Lucia through major public and private sector developments, including the Republic Bank Rodney Bay City Centre, Northern Divisional Police Headquarters, Cabot Resorts, A’ila Resorts, Talvern Housing Development, Halls of Justice, Global Ports Holding developments in Port Castries and Soufrière, Anchorage by the Sea, The View at the Morne, Anse Ferre, Roseau Food Court and Souvenir Market, the Millennium Highway and West Coast Road Reconstruction Project, Caribbean Galaxy and the St Jude Hospital Reconstruction Project, among several others.
The latest CSO data also show that construction employment increased by 14% during the second quarter, while administrative and support services recorded a 35.1% increase. Accommodation and food services remained the single largest employing industry, accounting for 16.4% of total employment, followed by wholesale and retail trade at 14.2% and construction at 9.4%.
Prime Minister Pierre has reaffirmed that his Cabinet, working alongside public and private sector partners, will continue to pursue policies that create jobs, strengthen businesses, develop Saint Lucia’s human capital, attract productive investment and modernise the country’s infrastructure.
The Government remains focused on building a resilient economy in which economic growth translates into greater opportunities, improved livelihoods and a better quality of life for the people of Saint Lucia.
