Bermuda’s unemployment rate at the end of 2022 was back down to where it was before the pandemic hit the island, according to the Labour Force Survey released by the Department of Statistics.

The figures indicate that the economy has by some measures recovered, though they also suggest that parts of society may have missed out on some of the rebound.

In November last year, the unemployment rate in Bermuda was 3.1 per cent, compared with 3.8 per cent in November 2019. The rate hit 7.9 per cent in November 2020.

Improvements were reported in almost all subcategories.

Unemployment among men was 4.1 per cent in November 2022, down from 4.5 per cent in November 2019. For women, it was 2.0 per cent, down from 2.9 per cent pre-pandemic.

In all age groups but two — the 45-54 and 65-and-above cohorts — the unemployment was lower.

The jobs recovery was particularly pronounced in the 35-44 category, where the rate dropped from 3.4 per cent pre-pandemic to 1.0 per cent last November.

For people without a high school diploma, the unemployment rate fell from 7.4 per cent pre-pandemic to 2.8 per cent.

The jobless rate rose slightly for non-Bermudians, from 1.6 per cent to 1.8 per cent.

In the survey, 1,550 household were selected, and of those 1,211 answered a questionnaire. Those participating did so by phone or in person. Results were extrapolated from this sample.

The employment rate, which is the percentage of the population working, rebounded as well, hitting 80.4 per cent from November 2019’s 78.7 per cent, though the number of economically inactive in Bermuda was higher than it was before the pandemic, at 17,903.

The rise is the result almost exclusively of people retiring.

Incomes rose steadily through the pandemic, with the average increasing from $62,557 in November 2019 to $65,725 in November 2022.