In the private sector there were 15.6 thousand and in the public sector 10.3 thousand job vacancies. Over the year the job vacancy number in private sector fell by 0.3 thousand or 2.0 % and in he public sector it grew by 1.7 thousand or 20.3 % – suggesting a potential migration of employment from the public to the private sector.
Of all jobs available in Latvia (both occupied and vacant), 2.8 % positions were vacant, of which 3.5 % were in the public and 2.5 % in the private sector.
Compared to 2021, in 2022 the average number of occupied posts in the country went down by 4.9 thousand or 0.6 %. In private sector it dropped by 2.1 thousand or 0.3 % and in public by 2.8 thousand or 1.0 %.
In terms of major occupational groups, the largest share of job vacancies was recorded among craft and related trades workers (4.2 %), technicians and associate professionals (4.1 %), skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers (3.2 %), as well as elementary occupations (3.2 %).
In terms of economic activities, the largest share of job vacancies (7.5 %) was recorded in public administration, followed by mining and quarrying (4.1 %), administrative and support service activities (3.4 %), accommodation and food service activities as well as information and communication (3.3 %), manufacturing, construction, transportation and storage (3.2 %).
Regional breakdown of the data shows that in 2022 the largest share of job vacancies was registered in Riga (3.6 % or 17.8 thousand) and the smallest in Kurzeme and Vidzeme (1.1 and 0.9 thousand, respectively). In Pierīga region 2.6 % of jobs or 3.7 thousand positions were vacant, in Zemgale 1.8 % or 1.2 thousand, and in Latgale 1.7 % or 1.1 thousand.
Among the three Baltic states, the greatest proportion of job vacancies was recorded in Latvia – 2.8 %, followed by Estonia with 2.0 % and Lithuania with 1.9 %. The sharpest rise in the job vacancy number over the year was observed in Estonia (19.4 %). Lithuania followed with an upturn of 6.0 % and Latvia with 5.8 %.
