Saint Lucia's labour market continued its steady improvement in the second quarter of 2026, with the national unemployment rate falling to 10.1% for the period April to June. The latest Labour Force Survey from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) shows a decline from 12.1% recorded in the first quarter of the year, and a more pronounced improvement when set against the 13.4% unemployment rate registered in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
Total employment reached 99,528 persons in the second quarter, an increase of 691 people over the previous quarter and 1,677 more than in the same period last year. The employment rate consequently rose to 89.9% of the labour force, compared with 87.9% in the first quarter and 86.6% one year earlier. The year-on-year reduction in unemployment stands at 3.3 percentage points.
Progress was also recorded among young people, a group that has historically faced higher barriers to work. Youth unemployment fell to 15.5% in the second quarter of 2026, down from 18.5% in the previous quarter and 24.1% in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
The Government of Saint Lucia welcomed the results as another indication of continued economic strengthening and the expansion of employment opportunities for Saint Lucians. When Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre assumed office in 2021, a central priority of his administration was to rebuild economic confidence and create an environment in which businesses could expand, new investments could take root and more citizens could access sustainable employment.
Over the past five years, the Pierre-led administration has pursued people-centred economic policies aimed at supporting local businesses, attracting foreign direct investment, strengthening key productive sectors and accelerating public infrastructure development. The impact of this approach is visible across the island through major public and private sector projects, including the Republic Bank Rodney Bay City Centre, the Northern Divisional Police Headquarters, Cabot Resorts, A'ila Resorts, the Talvern Housing Development, the Halls of Justice, Global Ports Holding developments in Port Castries and Soufrière, the Millennium Highway and West Coast Road Reconstruction Project, and the St Jude Hospital Reconstruction Project, among several others.
Sectoral data from the CSO show that construction employment increased by 14% during the second quarter, while administrative and support services recorded a 35.1% increase. Accommodation and food services remained the single largest employing industry, accounting for 16.4% of total employment, followed by wholesale and retail trade at 14.2% and construction at 9.4%.
Prime Minister Pierre has reaffirmed that his Cabinet, working alongside public and private sector partners, will continue to pursue policies that create jobs, strengthen businesses, develop the country's human capital, attract productive investment and modernise infrastructure. The Government remains focused on building a resilient economy in which economic growth translates into greater opportunities, improved livelihoods and a better quality of life for the people of Saint Lucia.
