New employment figures show the number of Bermudians in the work force slipped by one percent -- even though hundreds of new jobs were created.

The 1997 Employment survey -- released yesterday -- showed 663 new jobs over the same period in 1996 with women taking 367 of the new jobs.

Bermudians held 27,256 jobs, 371 more than 1996 while a total of 8,040 non-Bermudians are working, and of that number 1,515 are spouses of Bermudians.

The total number of people working in Bermuda is 35,296.

The jobs survey, conducted by the Government Statistics Department, is a snapshot of the job market between August 3 and 9, 1997.

The tourism industry contracted further last year with 90 less jobs, a two percent loss. Some 4,146 people were employed at hotels, a drop from 4,236 in 1996.

At the same time the construction industry saw an increase of 147 jobs to 2,043 people in the building trades.

And the percentage of non-Bermudian workers increased by one percent with foreign workers filling 292 jobs compared to 371 locals joining the economy.

International business saw the single largest numerical increase in employees with 247 people starting work in 1997, an increase of ten percent.

The report said: "For the second consecutive year the results within this sector contrasted those in the hotel industry, Bermuda's other leading earner of foreign exchange.'' International companies employed 2,667 people or eight percent of the total number employed.

In 1997 the public sector -- called public administration and defence -- saw a three percent increase of 140 people, bringing the total number to 4,608 people.

About the racial distribution of jobs in the upper echelon of the work force, the report writers said: "White job holders were twice as likely as other workers to hold professional and technical positions.'' Seventy-one percent of whites held jobs in the white collar sector compared to half of blacks being employed in the sector.

"Whites are three times as likely to hold administrative and managerial positions, getting 170 or 64 percent of the 267 new jobs in the category,'' the report added.

Blacks did, however, account for half of the growth in the category, taking 116 of the 226 additional professional and technical posts.

The Employment Survey is available from the Department of Information Services on the Ground Floor of Global House or from the Statistics Department on the Second floor. The cost is $7.

SURVEY SUR