ST. LUCIA-Government reports decline in unemployment rate.

CASTRIES, St. Lucia, CMC- The St. Lucia government on Monday said that the unemployment rate had declined to 10.1 percent during the second quarter of this year.

The latest Labor Force Survey from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) confirmed that unemployment fell from 12.1 percent in the first quarter of this year to 10.1 percent for the period April to June.

It said the improvement is even more pronounced than in the corresponding period last year, when unemployment stood at 13.4 percent, and that this quarter’s figure represents a 3.3 percentage-point reduction year on year.

The government said the labor market also recorded an increase in the number of employed persons, with total employment reaching 99,528 persons in the second quarter, up 691 persons from the previous quarter and 1,677 compared with the same period last year.

It said the employment rate rose to 89.9 percent of the labor force, up from 87.9 percent in the first quarter and 86.6 percent a year earlier. Youth employment also declined to 15.5 percent, down from 18.5 percent in the previous quarter and 24.1 percent in the corresponding quarter of 2025.

The statement said that over the last five years, the Phillip J Pierre-led administration has pursued people-centered economic policies aimed at supporting local businesses, attracting foreign direct investment, strengthening key productive sectors and accelerating public infrastructure development.

It said this approach is visible across Saint Lucia through major public and private sector developments, and that the latest CSO data also show construction employment increased by 14 percent in the second quarter. In comparison, administrative and support services rose 35.1 percent.

Accommodation and food services remained the single largest employing industry, accounting for 16.4 percent of total employment, followed by wholesale and retail trade at 14.2 percent and construction at 9.4 percent.