Unemployment Losses in COVID-19 Pandemic Hit Historic Lows

Executive Director of the Caribbean Policy Research Institute, (CAPRI) Dr. Damien King says at the lowest point during the pandemic Jamaica’s unemployment numbers in a matter of months dropped to post-World War 2 lows.

The unemployment and other staggering findings were announced by researchers during a virtual event jointly staged with CAPRI and the Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies, (SALISES) from a UNDP-funded Socio-Economic Impact Assessment, (SEIA) of COVID-19 and policy options in Jamaica. 

It is the first definitive study of its kind based on interviews with more than 3000 people across Jamaica. The economy took a lashing, and in Jamaica’s case, the study uncovered that the economy uncovered contracted at about one fifth at its lowest point which was in the second quarter of 2020

The researcher says businesses were forced to pivot but not without challenges. She noted that 20 percent of business reported that they had challenges with logistics and had to procure their goods at a much higher price. Threatening longevity of businesses during the pandemic. Meanwhile, the study also found among those hardest hit by the crisis in the workforce were women, youth, and informal workers.

More in this CVM Live story from Neika Lewis: