Unemployment in Antigua and Barbuda

The One Stop Employment Centre (OSEC) is the main public and private job-matching service. It maintains a jobseeker database, advertises vacancies and has expanded digital and WhatsApp outreach. Official programme material describes the service as complimentary, but current registration documents and processing times are not centrally published. An older official notice listed a passport, Social Security card, Medical Benefits card, CV or résumé, certificates, driver's licence and references; applicants should confirm the current list with OSEC or the Labour Department. The Labour Department and Labour Commissioner can be contacted at +1 268 462-4988 or +1 268 462-9202 and deplabour@ab.gov.ag. The Antigua and Barbuda Social Security Board (ABSSB) does not list an unemployment benefit in its published benefits. Income support may instead come through the Social Protection Board and the Government Assistance Programme (GAP), which use vulnerability and programme criteria rather than a universal entitlement for everyone without work. The Social Protection Act 2020 describes assistance for vulnerable people whose total income falls below the poverty line and provides specific criteria in Schedule 3. Current activation, eligibility decisions and payment schedules require confirmation with the responsible authority. A 2023 budget report stated that about 10,000 individuals or households received support through Government Assistance, the PDVCAB People's Benefit Programme and the Utility Subsidy Programme, with total support of about EC$8.5 million. These figures describe particular programmes and periods, not a general unemployment payment. No duty to register for an unemployment benefit was evidenced. A worker who loses a job because of redundancy may have a severance claim under the Labour Code. Employment with the employer or its predecessors generally has to exceed one year, the employer must end it because the work has ceased or substantially diminished, and the minimum is one day's pay at the latest basic wage for each month or major fraction of a month. The payment is due at termination, and the Code gives the claim priority in bankruptcy, liquidation or closure; civil recovery is available. A successor employer may preserve the worker's tenure instead of ending it in some circumstances. Termination evidence can affect the available remedies. For misconduct, the Code allows termination without advance notice; during probation, the minimum notice is 24 hours. Other employees generally receive notice of at least the pay interval, up to 30 days unless the contract provides a longer period, or payment instead of notice. The employer must provide the precise written reason for termination within seven working days after termination or notice. After probation, the Code protects against unfair dismissal, while expiry of a fixed-term contract is treated separately. Good cause can include misconduct, lack of capability or qualifications, redundancy, closure, force majeure or another recognised reason. A worker can raise an unfair-dismissal complaint with the Labour Commissioner. The Code provides for an immediate voluntary attempt to adjust or settle the matter, and an Industrial Court process is evidenced. Health coverage does not automatically continue through an unemployment payment. The Medical Benefits Scheme (MBS) provides a voluntary-continuation option for people aged 16 to 69 after at least three months of unemployment, with regular contributions required to maintain medical benefits. The contribution amount and current procedure should be verified directly with MBS. The New Work Experience Programme (NWEP), documented in 2023 and 2025 budget materials, offers young unemployed people internship or apprenticeship placements with employers and professional or personal development. It may support a transition into work but does not guarantee placement or income. The latest located official Labour Force Survey was conducted in 2018. It used a working-age definition of 15 years and recorded a working-age population of 71,993, a labour force of 51,931, labour-force participation of 72.1% and 4,502 unemployed people, based on 1,450 households. The recorded unemployment rate was 9.9% for women and 7.3% for men. The survey was preliminary and subject to revision, covered Antigua only, and did not enumerate Barbuda because of displacement after Hurricane Irma. It therefore does not establish a current nationwide rate for Antigua and Barbuda.