2.8 million Dominicans out of the workforce

Santo Domingo.- Approximately 2.8 million Dominicans aged 15 and older are currently out of the labor market or inactive, according to the National Continuous Labor Force Survey (ENCFT) for the April-June 2024 quarter, released by the Central Bank. Among this group, 326,285 people are classified as having potential labor force status, meaning they are available to work even if they haven’t actively searched for a job. The remaining 2.48 million individuals neither sought employment nor were available for work.

The ENCFT also revealed that the employment rate reached a historic high of 61.9% during this period, marking a 1.8 percentage point increase from the same quarter in 2023. The unemployment rate for those actively seeking work decreased slightly by 0.3 percentage points, from 5.6% in April-June 2023 to 5.3% in 2024. Additionally, the SU3 labor force underutilization rate, which includes both the openly unemployed and those willing to work despite not currently seeking employment, fell by 1.0 percentage points, from 11.8% to 10.8%.

These positive labor market indicators are seen as a reflection of the Dominican economy’s resilience amid challenging global economic conditions. Despite high interest rates in international markets, geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, and volatile raw material prices, the Dominican labor market has demonstrated robust performance, in line with expectations and ongoing domestic economic reforms.