There were 362 more positions in the workforce last year than in 2007, with 330 of them filled by non-Bermudians.

According to figures released by the Department of Statistics today, expats make up a high proportion of professional jobs in the labour market - almost three-quarters of accountants and two-thirds of nurses.

Government released the statistics as part of the 2009 edition of the Bermuda Job Market Employment Briefs. The data is a snapshot of the main findings of the 2008 Annual Employment Survey.

According to chief statistician Valerie Robinson-James, based on the latest Employment Survey results, Bermuda’s employers reported an increase of 362 jobs over 2007.

Ms Robinson-James said: “There were 40,213 jobs counted in 2008 compared to 39,851 in 2007.

“The breakdown of the increase showed that men gained 300 jobs, while women’s jobs increased by 62 over the previous year.

“The number of jobs held by Bermudians declined by 92, while positions filled by non-Bermudians increased by 330. Meanwhile spouses of Bermudians and permanent residents recorded moderate increases in the level of jobs filled for 2008.”

According to the survey, 72 percent of accountants and 62 percent of registered nurses were non-Bermudians.

The construction industry and business services collectively posted 244 new jobs in 2008.

Meanwhile, the median annual income in the workplace was $54,867 — an increase of three percent on 2007.

Free copies of the Employment Briefs are available from the Department of Statistics at the Cedar Park Centre building.

You can also download the information at: www.statistics.gov.bm.

For the full story see tomorrow’s Royal Gazette.