The formal employment landscape in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as indicated by the National Insurance Services, has experienced an augmentation of 3,266 positions since the year 2020.
As stated by Minister of Finance Camilo Gonsalves In comparison to the contraction experienced during the COVID period of 2020/2021, formal employment has seen an increase of 4,977 jobs, reflecting a notable rise of 12.5 percent.
This rise, he asserts, does not account for the substantial demographic of self-employed individuals and informal workers, nor does it encompass the entrepreneurs who remain inadequately represented on the NIS rolls.
In 2022, the most recent year for which data is accessible, the proportion of the population that was unemployed, actively seeking employment, and unable to secure a position stood at 10.8 percent.
Gonsalves remarked that the inauguration of Sandals Resorts and the Holiday Inn Express and Suites has, in itself, generated nearly 900 new employment opportunities for the people of St. Vincent.
Gonsalves noted that following the 2022 Labour Force Survey, the NIS rolls have increased by 2,707 employees, representing five percent of the labour force.
In the years 2023 and 2024, public servants were granted salary increments of 2.5 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Gonsalves declared a 2.5 percent enhancement in salary for the year 2025.
