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WQ.141/2018
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SECURITY BY SENATOR S.C. FERGUSON
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 11th SEPTEMBER 2018
Question
Will the Minister advise –
- how many people are currently on the Back to Work scheme;
- how many people are currently listed as actively seeking work;
- how these two sets of figures reconcile with unemployment figures published by Statistics Jersey; and
- whether it is possible for someone of working age to have ceased working, or to have ceased looking for a job, and not to appear in records maintained by her Department in respect of unemployment and job seekers?
Answer
- As of the end of quarter 2 (June 2018) there were 820 people registered with Back to Work as actively seeking work (ASW). The Back to Work teams also provide some specialist services to people who are not registered as actively seeking work.
- There were 820 actively seeking work (ASW) jobseekers as at the end of June 2018
- Statistics Jersey publish two unemployment indicators for Jersey:
- registered unemployment: the number of people registered as actively seeking work (ASW) with the Social Security Department – this data is provided by Back to Work and then independently analysed and published by Statistics Jersey
- the International Labour Organisation (ILO) unemployment rate: the number of registered unemployed as well as people not registered but still seeking work
- Yes, there will be working age people who are not working but not registered as actively seeking work and therefore not recorded as part of the unemployment statistics. This will include people with long-term health conditions, people who have retired early, and people who are looking after a family or caring for a relative.
It is important to note that unemployed Jersey residents are not required to register as ASW (there are however certain requirements for those in receipt of Income Support).
The registered unemployment numbers published by Statistics Jersey therefore constitute an informative set of indicators demonstrating the level of individuals registered as actively seeking work in the island at a given point in time. The internationally comparable unemployment rate is defined by the ILO. This includes both the registered unemployed and those not registered but still seeking work.
Statistics Jersey publish the ILO unemployment rate for Jersey. It is measured by the Annual Social Survey, the Household Spending and Income Survey and the Census. In recent years, the ILO unemployment rate for Jersey has been:
- 4.7% in March 2011, measured by the 2011 Jersey Census, corresponding to 2,570 people being unemployed and looking for work in March 2011
- 5.7% in June 2013, measured by the 2013 Jersey Annual Social Survey, corresponding to 3,200 people being unemployed and looking for work in June 2013
- 4% in the period of April 2014 to May 2015, measured by the 2014/2015 Household Spending and Income Survey, corresponding to 2,500 people being unemployed and looking for work