Puerto Rico Labor Secretary María del Pilar Vélez-Casanova discussed January labor data showing the island’s unemployment rate at 5.7%
Puerto Rico’s unemployment rate held steady at 5.7% in January, a sign of labor market stability even as employment rose in sectors including health services, education and tourism, according to the Department of Labor and Human Resources.
“The data from the Worker Group and the nonfarm payroll employment surveys for January 2026 point to a scenario of job stability, with progress in key sectors of the economy and moderate adjustments in other productive areas,” Labor Secretary María del Pilar Vélez-Casanova said. “They also show stability in the unemployment rate and growth in strategic sectors such as health, education and tourism.”
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged from December but 0.3 percentage points higher than in January 2025. The number of unemployed people stood at 70,000, unchanged from the previous month but up by 3,000 from a year earlier.
Labor force participation was 44.8%, down 0.2 percentage points from December and up 0.1 percentage points from January 2025. The labor force totaled 1,234,000 people, up by 1,000 both month over month and year over year. Total employment reached 1,164,000, up by 1,000 from December but down by 2,000 from January 2025.
Nonfarm payroll employment totaled 949,200 jobs, down by 400 from the previous month and by 3,800 from a year earlier. Monthly declines were reported in trade, transportation and utilities; information; financial activities; government; professional and business services; and other services.
Employment gains were recorded in education and health services and in leisure and hospitality. Year over year, gains were also reported in leisure and hospitality; education and health services; mining, logging and construction; and financial activities.
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