Caribbean Employment

Lack of employment opportunities has Dominicans concerned

jobs in the dominican republic

Nearly a quarter of Dominicans surveyed were concerned about job opportunities. (Photo by Eric Prouzet on Unsplash)

Inflation, crime and jobs are the top three concerns among Dominicans

SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC — The perception of a possible lack of jobs in the Dominican Republic nears the top of the list of concerns for citizens and residents in the country.

This is according to a recent survey undertaken by the Gallup group, in conjunction with RCC Media.

That survey, conducted in April, asked some 1,200 Dominican citizens and residents to rank what they feel the top three main problems in the country are.

Unemployment was the third biggest concern for Dominicans surveyed.

Sky-high inflation and a generally increasing cost of living topped the list, with 68.9 percent of respondents citing this as one of their biggest concerns.

Not far behind was crime in general, and especially robberies, assaults and gang violence, which was a major concern for 62.6 percent of respondents.

Concern about unemployment and a shortage of job opportunities rounded out the list in third place.

Despite making the top-three list, concern about unemployment actually received just 23.9 percent of votes.

The results indicate concern about this weighs significantly less than inflation and crime. However, it is still a marked increase over the concern that was ranked in fourth place, which was administrative corruption at 12.4 percent.

Even further, the state of the economy, and a potential economic crisis was a major concern for 10.8 percent of respondents; while another 2.9 percent said they were seriously concerned about low job wages.

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    Jobs, wages, informality all major concerns

    Job informality rates in the Dominican Republic peaked last year.

    The Gallup/RCC Media survey comes as the government has recently announced a wage increase for certain minimum wage jobs in the Dominican Republic.

    Nonetheless, despite this, it is clear that concerns about being able to earn a decent, honest living still hold considerable space in Dominicans’ minds.

    This is entirely reasonable, given that informal employment, which leaves workers and their families vulnerable, is still prevalent throughout the Caribbean.

    Informal workers are often among the lowest earners in any given country, and, unlike formal employees, they don’t get the benefit of minimum wage increases.

    Even further, as of the end of 2022, job informality rates in the Dominican Republic had risen to nearly 60 percent.

    The data underscores why jobseekers in the Dominican Republic, and throughout the region on the whole, can benefit from resources like Caribbean Employment to help them find the best job opportunities for their skill sets.

    Find the latest job opportunities in the Caribbean via Caribbean Employment Services Inc.

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