Labor market in Fiji

The Employment & Unemployment Survey (EUS) 2023–24/2024 covers a 12-month period, about 6,000 households and 600 enumeration areas across Fiji's four divisions, including maritime areas. It applies updated 19th and 21st International Conference of Labour Statisticians standards, so its results are not directly comparable with the 2015–16 survey. Among people aged 15 and over, 314,898 were in the labour force, giving a labour force participation rate (LFPR) of 51.2%. The labour force comprises employed and unemployed people who are available for and seeking work. Another 299,933 people were outside the labour force. The survey recorded 18,073 unemployed people, while the broader LU4 labour-underutilisation measure was 12.5%. Subsistence foodstuff producers outside the labour force numbered 102,106, and all forms of subsistence production work involved 233,842 people, showing why paid employment figures do not describe every livelihood in Fiji. Services employed 57.6% of workers, agriculture, forestry and fishing 23.3%, and industry 14.5%. Wholesale and retail accounted for 19.9% of employment, other services 19.3%, accommodation and food 7.4%, manufacturing 6.5%, construction 6.3%, education 5.9%, and public administration and defence 5.3%. These figures describe employment structure rather than a guarantee of vacancies. Tourism, retail, public services, education and construction are among the areas with visible formal demand, while agriculture, forestry and fishing remain central to livelihoods and informal work. The Central Division had 131,956 employed people and the Western Division 119,017, compared with 33,413 in the Northern Division and 12,439 in the Eastern Division. Wage employment represented 72.4% of employment in Central, 63.1% in Western, 50.2% in Northern and 28.6% in Eastern. Own-account work made up 62.2% in Eastern. Rural and maritime communities generally rely more on self-employment and subsistence activity and face greater transport and market-access constraints. Suva and Nadi concentrate a large share of formal demand, but the location of a vacancy does not remove the cost of travel, relocation or irregular access to services. Men had an LFPR of 65.7% and women 36.2%. The unemployment rate was 4.9% for men and 7.4% for women, while LU4 was 9.9% for men and 16.9% for women. Unpaid care and informal work are significant barriers to women's access to paid employment. Young people aged 15–24 had an unemployment rate of 18.3%. Fiji's national NEET measure for ages 15–35 counted 67,924 people, or 26.6%; the rate was 39.4% for women and 14.8% for men. The UN NEET measure for ages 15–24 was 23.7%, with rates of 42.8% in Eastern, 26.1% in Northern, 24.2% in Western and 21.0% in Central. Among iTaukei people, the LFPR was 51.4% and unemployment 6.5%; among Indo-Fijians, the figures were 51.4% and 4.5%; for other groups, they were 45.9% and 5.6%. Employees formed 57.0% of workers, employers 3.1%, own-account workers 23.7% and contributing family workers 1.1%. Among employees, 68.5% had permanent relationships, 15.7% fixed-term relationships and 12.3% short-term or casual relationships. The EUS distinguishes the informal sector from informal employment: informal employment affected 41.9% of workers, while the informal sector included 97,654 workers, or 33% of employment. Informal work is especially common in agriculture, forestry and fishing and in Eastern, Northern and rural areas. It can provide income where formal vacancies are scarce, but usually offers less predictable earnings and weaker access to formal protections. Within the labour force, 69.8% had secondary education, 25.6% tertiary education and 4.2% primary education. Women had a larger tertiary-educated share than men, 32.4% compared with 22.0%. Fiji National University and the National Training and Productivity Centre support Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), including short courses, apprenticeships and trade testing. The National Qualifications Framework links certificates, diplomas and degrees, while the National Trade Testing Scheme covers 29 trades. It does not require a minimum formal school qualification, but applicants need the relevant practical and technical knowledge. Programme access and fees depend on the course and available financing; Fiji has no general entitlement to free training. The National Employment Centre (NEC), under the Ministry of Employment, Productivity and Workplace Relations (MEPWR), provides a national one-stop employment-creation service. It offers registration, counselling, life and employment skills, entrepreneurship support, placement, work attachment, volunteer opportunities and pathways to local or overseas work. The NEC Local Employment Registration System went live on 1 February 2026 and supports matching, labour-market data and skill-gap functions. Registration records a profile, qualification and experience, but placement is not guaranteed. The official access fee was not stated in the available research, and illegal recruitment agents should be avoided. The national minimum wage has been FJD 5.00 per hour since 1 April 2025; the preceding rate was FJD 4.50 from 1 August 2024. Ten sectors also have sectoral wage rates, each increasing by FJD 0.50 in two stages. Examples from 1 April 2025 include FJD 5.44 per hour for retail cashiers and FJD 7.54 for construction foremen. The EUS recorded average employee earnings of FJD 1,392 per month, with FJD 1,403 for men and FJD 1,375 for women. Average earnings were about FJD 1,444 in the formal sector for men and FJD 1,431 for women, about FJD 846 in agricultural employment, FJD 1,641 in education and FJD 1,662 in public administration and defence. Informal and household-sector earnings are substantially lower, and pay also varies by region and gender. Fiji's Constitution recognises a progressive right to work and a just minimum wage. MEPWR administers the Employment Relations Act 2007, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1996, the National Employment Centre Act 2009 and the Workers Compensation Act. Labour Standards, occupational safety and health services, mediation, the Employment Relations Tribunal and tripartite dialogue form part of the labour-market framework. The 2023 amendment to the Employment Relations Act expanded freedom of association in financial services, telecommunications, civil aviation, public utilities and the public service. Proposed reforms, including an Employment Relations Bill and Work Care Bill, as well as a National Productivity Commission, were part of the 2025 agenda and should not be treated as implemented changes. Fiji's labour market faces skill loss, population movement and shortages of accountants, engineers and skilled tradespeople. Potential growth areas include business-process outsourcing, agricultural value addition, renewable energy and the digital economy. Fijians can seek approved overseas seasonal work through Australia's Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme (PALM) and New Zealand's Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme (RSE). NEC is Fiji's authorised channel for preparation and recruitment for these government-to-government schemes; about 1,000 Fijians were in the New Zealand RSE scheme in May 2025. These schemes can bring income, skills and remittances, but also carry risks of family separation, skilled-worker loss and recruiter fraud. A non-citizen seeking work in Fiji generally needs an employer-sponsored work permit through the Ministry of Immigration under the Immigration Act 2003. The application normally involves an employment contract, medical and police checks and, where relevant, a local understudy or training arrangement. A visitor permit does not allow an in-country work-permit application. The stated fees are FJD 650.05 for the application and FJD 185 for permit issue; processing depends on the case, and incomplete documents can lead to refusal. Employers carry repatriation responsibility under the contract, and changing employer requires Immigration approval. Short-term permits cover up to one year and long-term permits typically cover three years. This arrangement is intended for demonstrated local skill needs and does not replace ordinary local matching.