Jamaica's unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) was 7.82% in 2023, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 13.22 percentage points from 21.04% in 2013.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 7.82% | 2023 |
| Five years earlier | 14.18% | 2018 |
| Ten years earlier | 21.04% | 2013 |
| Highest | 48.04% | 1980 |
| Lowest | 7.82% | 2023 |
| Average since 2014 | 14.56% | 2014–2023 |
| First recorded | 24.15% | 1975 |
What the numbers say
In 2023, Jamaica's unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) fell 3.21 percentage points on 2022 (from 11.02% to 7.82%).
Across the 23 yearly changes before that (1976 to 2022), the average change was −0.15 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 4.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 6.46 percentage points in 1995 and the biggest yearly fall was 18.37 percentage points in 1981. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is downward, about 1.22 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 79% of the movement over 9 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
See how every economy compares in the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Jamaica | 7.82% | 2023 |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 9.96% | 2025 |
Closest to Jamaica in the 2023 ranking
- Armenia — 2nd of 5: 18.38%
- Indonesia — 3rd of 5: 13.32%
- Kyrgyz Republic — 4th of 5: 9.18%
What this measures
Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.
Limitations: The criteria for people considered to be seeking work, and the treatment of people temporarily laid off or seeking work for the first time, vary across countries. In many cases it is especially difficult to measure employment and unemployment in agriculture. The timing of a survey can maximize the effects of seasonal unemployment in agriculture. And informal sector employment is difficult to quantify where informal activities are not tracked.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 35 values
| Year | Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 7.82 |
| 2022 | 11.02 |
| 2021 | 13.31 |
| 2020 | 16.55 |
| 2019 | 11.78 |
| 2018 | 14.18 |
| 2017 | 17.04 |
| 2016 | 19.44 |
| 2015 | no data |
| 2014 | 19.88 |
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) in nearby economies
- Argentina — 17.75% (2025)
- Bahamas, The — 11.62% (2024)
- Barbados — 15.37% (2024)
- Bolivia — 3.63% (2025)
- Brazil — 11.89% (2025)
- Chile — 19.38% (2025)
- Colombia — 14.03% (2025)
- Costa Rica — 17.39% (2025)
More social protection & labor data for Jamaica
- Net migration — -11,053 (2025)
- Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) — 3.02% (2023)
- Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) — 3.92% (2023)
- Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) — 2.24% (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (national estimate) — 60.58% (2023)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) (national estimate) — 83.7% (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) (national estimate) — 72.38% (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Jamaica's unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate)?
- 7.82% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1975?
- It is down 16.33 percentage points from 24.15% in 1975. The highest value was 48.04% in 1980 and the lowest 7.82% in 2023.
- Is the latest change in unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) unusual for Jamaica?
- In 2023, Jamaica's unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) fell 3.21 percentage points on 2022 (from 11.02% to 7.82%). Across the 23 yearly changes before that (1976 to 2022), the average change was −0.15 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 4.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.1524.MA.NE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: September 28, 2026 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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