Labour force, Employment and Unemployment – Year 2020
Highlights
1. The labour force, employment and unemployment for the year 2020 are based on the results of the Continuous Multi-Purpose Household Survey (CMPHS) and Survey on Monitoring the Socio-Economic Effects of COVID-19 on Mauritian Households.
2. Changes in employment, unemployment and labour force from 2019 to 2020 are due to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly during the lockdown period when a large number of individuals involuntarily moved out of the labour market.
3. Labour force decreased by 20,900 (-18,100 males and -2,800 females) from 591,000 in 2019 to 570,100 in 2020. During the same period, the number of those outside labour force increased by 26,000 from 405,600 to 431,600.
4. Mauritian employment decreased by 33,400 (-28,800 males and -4,600 females) from 551,300 in 2019 to 517,900 in 2020.
5. Unemployment increased by 12,500 (+10,700 males and +1,800 females) from 39,700 in 2019 to 52,200 in 2020 resulting in an unemployment rate of 9.2%. From 2019 to 2020, male unemployment rate increased from 4.4% to 7.8% and female unemployment rate rose from 10.2% to 11.1%.
6. Unemployment rate in 2020 was highest in the lowest age group (16 to 24 years) with a rate of 26.1% (23.2% for male and 29.6% for female) and decreased progressively with increasing age.
7. Those outside the labour force (economically inactive) increased by 26,000 from 405,600 in 2019 to 431,600 in 2020.
