The employment problems in Narva and Ida-Viru County are sharper than elsewhere in Estonia.
According to the population registry office of Narva City Government, as of December 15, 2023, there were 39,729 people aged 15-74 living in Narva, including 31,362 of working age (Eurostat generally considers the working-age population to be in the age group of 15-64).
According to the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund, as of the end of December 2023, there were 3,116 registered unemployed individuals in Narva and a total of 7,391 registered unemployed individuals in Ida-Viru County. According to Statistics Estonia, the job vacancy rate in the fourth quarter of 2023 in Ida-Viru County was 1.9%.
The employment rate (the proportion of employed individuals in the working-age population) in Narva was 54.7% in 2023 (the Estonian average being 69.2%), and the unemployment rate (the proportion of unemployed individuals in the labor force) in Narva was 10.5% (the Estonian average being 6.4%).
According to Statistics Estonia, as of the fourth quarter of 2023, the average gross monthly wage in Narva was 1,472 euros. Meanwhile, the average gross monthly wage in Estonia was 1,904 euros.
Employment sectors:
According to Statistics Estonia, in 2023, the number of employed residents of Narva was 23.5 thousand. Broken down by sectors of activity, the residents of Narva were employed as follows:
– 6.8 thousand residents of Narva were employed in public administration and defense, compulsory social security, education, healthcare and social assistance, arts, entertainment, and leisure, as well as in the “other service activities” sector.
– 6.5 thousand residents of Narva were employed in the mining industry, manufacturing industry, electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply, water supply, sewerage, waste management, and remediation activities.
– 4.9 thousand residents of Narva were employed in wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, transportation and storage, accommodation and food service activities, as well as information and communication sector.
– 3.3 thousand residents of Narva were employed in financial and insurance activities; real estate activities; professional, scientific, and technical activities; as well as administrative and support service activities.
– 2 thousand residents of Narva were employed in the construction sector.