In the second quarter of 2020, the average number of salaried employees receiving remuneration from their employer in the modern non-public administration sector in Senegal registered a decrease of 37,344 compared to the first quarter of 2020, according to the results of a recent survey on the employment, remuneration and working hours (EERH) carried out by the National Agency for Statistics and Demography (ANSD) based in Dakar.
These employees stood at 304,003 compared to 341,347 in the same period of 2019, a decline of 10.9%. “This development is related to the decrease in the workforce in almost all sub-sectors, including accommodation and catering, construction, mining, manufacturing, transport and storage and trade, ”notes the ANSD.
However, an 11% increase to 7,499 in the average number of employees in the information and communications sector mitigated this decline. The decline in the construction workforce is attributable to the completion of some large projects.
With regard to the accommodation and catering, transport and warehousing as well as trade sectors, the ANSD survey indicates that the recorded decreases are mainly linked to the measures taken by the State to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (covid-19).
In the first half of 2020, the average number of salaried employees in the modern sector excluding public administration contracted by 7.5% compared to that recorded in the same period of 2019.
Regarding remuneration in the modern sector, the ANSD survey reveals that, like the average number of employees, remuneration in the modern sector has fallen by 9.4% compared to the second quarter of 2019 The results of the SEPH indicate that the wage bill stood at 306.3 billion FCFA in the second quarter of 2020 against 338 billion FCFA a year earlier. “This development is the result of lower remuneration in almost all sub-sectors following the reduction in their number of employees,” explains ANSD.
Over the first two quarters of 2020, compensation in the modern sector contracted 5.2% compared to the same period of 2019.
As for the hours worked, the average number per week stood at 40.9 hours during the period under review against 41.1 hours in the second quarter of 2019, a decrease of 1.4%. This situation is mainly attributable to the reduction in average weekly hours worked in the trade, construction, transport and warehousing, accommodation and catering, information and communication sector as well as in specialized scientific and technical activities.
However, in the health sector, it is noted a recovery of 29.8% of the average weekly hours worked. Over the first six months of 2020, the average number of hours worked per week also fell 0.8% compared to the corresponding period of 2019.
