Lewis Rejects Government’s Full-Employment Claim, Calls Job Numbers ‘Misleading’

Opposition MP Richard Lewis challenged the government’s claims of near-full employment during Monday’s Budget Debate, saying the administration is presenting job figures that cannot be verified without updated labour-force data.

Lewis took aim at the Prime Minister’s assertion that unemployment has fallen below five percent, telling the House that “we don’t know what the real unemployment rate is” because the last Labour Force Survey was conducted several years ago.

He argued that the government’s reliance on Social Security data to estimate job numbers creates a distorted picture of conditions on the ground.

The Finance Minister’s budget presentation stated that active jobs increased from 43,000 in 2014 to 54,000 in 2025—“the closest Antigua and Barbuda has been to full employment.”

Lewis called that conclusion premature, warning that without knowing the size of the current labour force, the unemployment rate cannot be accurately calculated.

He reminded the House that the last published labour-force data came from a survey conducted in 2018 and released in 2020, leaving policymakers without the up-to-date information needed to measure joblessness or plan effectively. “We need data in order to make informed decisions,” he said.

Lewis also pushed back at what he called an overly optimistic economic narrative, pointing to residents who continue to search for work and those “going to the Labour Department” in need of employment opportunities.

He urged the government to commission a new labour-force survey so the country can “get to the programme” and rely on real numbers rather than estimates.

The Rural West MP framed his objection as part of a larger concern about accuracy in the government’s economic reporting, arguing that job statistics must reflect “the reality on the ground” and not simply projections based on incomplete data.

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