Employees
13. Feb 2024
27,600 employees in January — a year-on-year increase of 1.3%
January 2024 saw an overall increase of 350 employees compared to January 2023, representing an increase of 1.3%.
[px-graph-1]
In January 2024, there were about 14,000 male and 13,600 female employees, a year-on-year increase of 1.6% for men and 0.9% for women.
[px-graph-2]
Fisheries down, other sectors up
The graphs below show the employee figures and the monthly trends in the four main industrial sectors.
The ‘governmental and other services’ sector has seen relatively steady growth since 2014. The January 2024 employee number in this sector increased by just over 200 (2%) year-on-year.
[px-graph-3]
The ‘private services’ sector increased by 38 employees (0.4%) since January 2023.
[px-graph-4]
The ‘construction and other manufacturing’ sector has experienced steady employee growth in the past two years, following a slight dip during the Covid pandemic. The employee figure in this sector increased by 128 (1.3%) in the past year.
[px-graph-5]
Employee numbers in the ‘fishery and other natural resources’ sector tend to fluctuate more than in the other industrial sectors. In January 2024, this sector had 3,937 registered employees. This is a decrease of 34 employees (0.9%) compared to January 2023 and the lowest figure since 2022.
[px-graph-6]
The table below shows employee numbers (January 2023 and January 2024) for each branch within the four main industrial sectors. The table reveals a notable decline in aquaculture employees. The biggest increase was registered in education and construction.
[px-graph-7]
Non-Danish citizens
In January 2024, 6.9% of employees had non-Danish citizenship, down 0.7% from December 2023. Compared to January 2023, however, this figure has increased by 0.4%.
[px-graph-8]
Most non-Danish employees are non-European citizens and predominantly work in fish processing, hotels and restaurants, aquaculture and household services.
[px-graph-9]
About employees
An employee is anyone aged between 16 and 74 who earns a wage that is subject to tax at source (PAYE) and resides in the Faroe Islands at the time of wage payment. A person is regarded as an employee if he or she receives a wage payment which is no lower than a day wage for an unskilled worker, regardless of whether the wage is paid by a Faroese or an overseas company.
About the trend
The trend describes the employee trend by adjusting for seasonal effects and error components in the figures.
About the main industrial sectors
Grouped under the ‘fishery and other natural resources’ sector are the following branches: agriculture, fishing, aquaculture, extraction of raw materials, fish processing and activities not elsewhere indicated.
The ‘construction and other manufacturing’ sector includes: shipyards/machine shops, other manufacturing, construction and energy.
The ‘private services’ sector includes: trade and repair, hotels and restaurants, sea transport, other transport, communications, finance and insurance, business services. household services and organisations, culture, etc.
‘Governmental and other services’ includes: public administration and services (central administration, municipalities, education, health and social work), government institutions and the Ministries of Education and Health.