Malta’s workforce shows resilience in Q3 as number of employed at par with previous quarter

During the third quarter of 2020, Malta’s Labour Force Survey estimates that total number of persons in employment was 259,731, almost at par with the previous quarter.

This suggests that, despite the ongoing pandemic and economic repercussions resulting from containment measures, COVID-19 aid measures are helping to hold the job market steady.

For Q3 2020, the Malta Labour Force Survey estimates indicate that, 59.4 per cent of the population aged 15 and over are currently in employment.

Unemployed persons stood at 12,589 (2.9 per cent) while inactive persons totalled 164,659 (37.7 per cent).

The activity rate for Q3 2020 was estimated at 77.3 per cent, with the highest rate recorded among persons aged 25 to 54 (87.9 per cent).

Onto employment stats, on average, out of every 100 persons aged between 15 and 64 years, 74 were employed.

The male employment rate for this age bracket was 80.8 per cent, while that for females stood at 65.5 per cent.

The largest share of employed persons was recorded among persons aged between 25 and 34 years, for both males and females.

With regards to the self-employed, this cohort accounted for 16.1 per cent of all persons with a main job.

The majority of employed persons worked on a full-time basis and amounted to 229,690. A further 30,041 had a part-time job as their primary employment.

Results show that, on average, full-timers usually worked 42.2 hours, while part-timers worked 22.5 hours per week.

In the third quarter of 2020, however, employed persons actually worked 34.0 hours per week, 1.6 hours less when compared to the previous year.

The average monthly basic salary of employees for the third quarter of 2020 was estimated at €1,536, while the highest basic salary was recorded in the Financial and insurance activities sector.

Average monthly salaries varied from €994 among persons employed in elementary occupations to €2,197 among managers.

With regards to the unemployed and inactive cohorts, the unemployment rate for the third quarter of 2020, stood at 4.6 per cent.

The largest share of unemployed persons was recorded among persons aged 25 to 74 years.

Females accounted for 59.3 per cent of total inactive persons and those over 65 years made up the highest share of the inactive.

Over 40 per cent were inactive because they had reached retirement age or were taking up early retirement.