Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS)

 

Press Release on the Results of the Labour Force Survey

First Quarter (January – March, 2022) Round

 

 

A Noticeable Increase in the Number of Employed Persons in Israel and Israeli Settlements during the First Quarter of 2022

 

 

The number of employed persons increased by 16 thousand in the 1^st quarter of 2022

The number of employed persons (excluding workers abroad) increased from about 1.092 million in the 4^th quarter of 2021 to about 1.108 million in the 1^st quarter of 2022, by 1%. This increase came as a result of the increase in the number of employed persons in the West Bank by 2% compared to the 4^th quarter of 2021, in addition to the increase in the number of employed persons in Gaza Strip by about 1% in the same period.

 

The largest increase was reported among wage employees, as this number increased by 44 thousands employed persons in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the fourth quarter 2021, while the number of self-employed persons (employers and self-employed) decreased by 25 thousand and the number of the unpaid family workers decreased by 2 thousand.

 

A decrease in the number of employed persons in the local market between the 4^th quarter of 2021 and the 1^st quarter of 2022

The number of employed persons in the local market decreased from 939 thousand employed persons in the 4^th quarter of 2021 to 904 thousand employed persons in the 1^st quarter of 2022, it decreased by 5% in the West Bank while it remained at the same level in Gaza Strip during the same period.

 

The results showed that most of the activities witnessed a decrease in the number of employed persons during the 1^st quarter of 2022 and the number of employed persons in the activities of constructions decreased the most, followed by transports, storage commerce, then the hotels and restaurant activities, followed by other services[1], and agriculture, and lastly the manufacturing industry and mining activities.

 

The average weekly working hours for wage employees in the West Bank was 43.6 hours per week compared to 35.8 hours in Gaza Strip. The average monthly working days was 22.2 working days in the West Bank compared to 20.9 working days in Gaza Strip.

 

An increase in the number of employed persons in Israel and Israeli settlements by 51 thousands between the 4^th quarter of 2021 and the 1^st quarter of 2022

The number of employed persons in Israel and Israeli settlements reached about 204 thousand employed persons in the 1^st quarter of 2022 compared to about 153 thousand employed persons in the 4^th quarter of 2021.

 

The number of employed persons in Israeli settlements increased from about 22,400 thousand in the 4^th quarter of 2021 to about 31,000 thousand employed persons in the 1^st  quarter of 2022. The number of workers in Israel and Israeli settlements in other services activity increased by about 16 thousand employed persons, then construction activity by

 

 

 

 

about 14 thousand then commerce and hotels by about 9 thousand employed persons, followed by transports and manufacturing and mining activities by 6 thousand employed persons for each of them, while agricultural, forestry, hunting and fishing activities remained at the same level during the two quarters.

 

The average daily wage for the wage employees in Israel and Israeli settlements was about 268 NIS in the 1^st quarter of 2022 compared to 269 NIS in the 4^th quarter of 2021.

 

7 out of 10 employed persons are wage employees

75% of employed persons are wage employees, 21% of employed persons are

 

self-employed and employers, and 4% are unpaid family members.

 

64% of the wage employees in the private sector were hired without any employment contract.

64% of wage employees in the private sector were hired without any employment contract, and 23% of wage employees receive a contribution to a pension fund/end of service compensation. Moreover, 46% of wage female employees receive a paid maternity leave.

 

43% of wage employees in the private sector receive monthly wage less than the minimum wage in Palestine

The percentage of wage employees in the private sector who receive a monthly wage less than the minimum wage in the West Bank was 22% in the 1^st quarter of 2022 (about 60 thousand employees). The number of wage employees in the private sector who receive a monthly wage less than the minimum wage in Gaza Strip was about 111 thousand of about 88% during the same period.

It is worth mentioning that the Council of Ministers issued a decree stating the minimum wage to be (1,880 NIS) as of the beginning of 2022.

 

The monthly minimum wage in Gaza Strip was (676 NIS) compared with (1,382 NIS) in the West Bank.

 

One fourth of the labour force participants was unemployed in the 1^st   quarter of 2022

The unemployment rate among labour force participants (15 years and above) in the 1^st  quarter of 2022 was about 25%, while the total underutilization of labour was about 33%, according to the revised International Labour Organization Standards (ICLS-19th).

 

There is still a large disparity in the unemployment rate between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as this rate reached 47% in Gaza Strip compared to 14% in the West Bank. The unemployment rate by sex  reached 21% among males compared to 41% among females.

 

 

Unemployment Rate (ICLS 19^th) by Region, Q1- 2020 – Q1-2022

 

 

The number of unemployed persons reached 378 thousand in the 1^st quarter of 2022; of which 244 thousand persons in Gaza Strip and 134 thousand persons in the West Bank.

 

The participation rate in the labour force increased to 45% in the 1^st quarter of 2022 compared with 44% in the 4^th quarter of 2021. Also, data indicated that this percentage increased from 46% to 47% in the West Bank, and increased from 40% to 41% in Gaza Strip during the same period.

 

The participation rate in the labour force among males was 71% in the 1^st quarter of 2022 compared to 70% in the 4^th quarter of 2021, whereas the participation rate among females increased from 18% to 19% during the same period.

 

Within the same context, the total underutilisation reached 526 thousand persons, as this number includes 60 thousand discouraged job seekers and 33 thousand in time-related underemployment.

 

Unemployment rate was the highest among youth graduates

About 48% is the unemployment rate of youth graduates (19-29) years who hold Associate Diploma Certificate and higher; 27% in the West Bank compared to 75% in Gaza Strip.