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Nakinskie Robinson reporting
By Nakinskie Robinson
Despite a report last year that Jamaica's unemployment rate for April 2023 stood at 4.5 per cent, the lowest in the country's history, some Jamaicans say there has been little to no improvement in the local job market in the last 10 years.
This is according to the latest Don Anderson poll, which canvassed responses on whether jobs are easier or more difficult to obtain today, when compared with 10 years earlier.
The poll comes amid discourse about a shortage of skilled labour locally and possibly importing workers to fill the gaps.
Some 29 per cent of those surveyed said jobs are slightly easier to get nowadays, while 20 per cent believe work is much easier to come by.
These represent an overall 49 per cent who agree that the job market has improved.
The majority of those who agreed were males.
In contrast, 36 per cent of respondents disagreed that jobs are easier to come by.
Twenty-six per cent said jobs are much more difficult to get today when compared with a decade ago, while 10 per cent said jobs are only slightly more difficult to obtain.
The majority of those who disagreed were females.
Meanwhile, another 10 per cent maintained that there has been no change in the job market.
Five per cent said they are uncertain about whether the current market makes it easier to obtain employment or not.
The poll canvassed responses from 1,015 registered voters.
Field work was conducted between November 24 and December 7.
It has a margin of error of plus or minus three per cent.
In the last three years, private sector players have lamented the shortage of skilled labour in a number of industries.
Last November, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said the country may eventually have to look outside the local labour force to fill the demand for skilled labour.
But the idea has been met with scepticism from trade unions, civil society and members of the public.
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