Jobs and growth

Well-being objective 5: Create more jobs and growth throughout the county

Why is this objective important?

Providing secure and well-paid jobs for local people is central to everything we are seeking to achieve. Increasing employability is fundamental to tackling poverty, reducing inequalities and has a dramatic impact on our health and ability to function in everyday society.

Why should this concern us?

• As at March 2020, of the 71.5% of Carmarthenshire’s workforce, 60.7% were employed in the professional/technical/skilled trade occupations - well below the Welsh average of 63.8%, whilst 39.2% were employed in the caring/leisure/customer service/machine operative occupations – well above the 35.8% Welsh average.
• We must tackle a GVA (gross value added) gap that is widening between UK GVA and Wales GVA; Total GVA in Carmarthenshire represents 4.8% of Wales total GVA, which is a relatively high share. However, GVA per job is low (£44,833), ranking 18th out of 22 authorities, indicating low productivity. GVA is the measure of the value of the wages and profits from goods and services produced in an area.
• The economy of Carmarthenshire has been badly affected by COVID-19 in 2020, and the employment impacts are likely to get worse in 2021. We will develop and implement a business and economy recovery plan that will enable the authority and our key partners to co-ordinate and target available resources to contain the scale of the likely economic downturn and to stimulate demand and confidence during the recovery, ensuring that Carmarthenshire’s economy can recover as quickly as possible to become one which is more productive, more equal, greener, and with healthier and more sustainable communities.
• We must also strengthen the foundational economy with a particular emphasis upon developing a progressive procurement principle and supporting businesses to become more productive and able to pay higher wages.