Unemployment fell to 6.9 percent in the second quarter

The rate of unemployment It fell to 6.9 percent in the second quarter, compared to 7 percent in the first quarter and 9.6 percent registered in the same period of 2021, as reported by Indec on Wednesday. Those affected add up to 1.46 million people throughout the country. It is the lowest number in 7 years and the decline coincides with a growth in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 6.9 percent in the second quarter compared to the same period in 2021.

The underemployment it also fell from 12.4 to 11.1 percent in one year. This group is made up of those people who work less than 35 hours per week and are willing to work more hours. There are the underemployed applicants who actively seek employment and the underemployed non-employers who wish to work more, but are not actively seeking employment. The underemployed applicants fell in one year from 8.5 to 7.7 percent, while those without applicants fell from 3.9 to 3.5 percent. The pressure on the labor market, made up of the universe of unemployed, underemployed, employed applicants and employed persons not available applicants, reached 28.8 percent of the economically active population.

The INDEC report detailed that in the second quarter the Activity rate -which measures the economically active population over the total population- rose in one year from 45.9 to 47.9 percent and the employment rate -which reflects the proportion of employed persons in relation to the total population- was from 41.5 to 44.6 percent.

In turn, in the salaried population “an increase was observed in the proportion of those who do not have a retirement discount” of 6.3 percentage points, which went from explaining 31.5 percent of the economically active population in the second quarter of 2021 up to 37.8 percent between April and last June.

On the other hand, the portion of salaried people with a retirement discount fell from 68.5 percent in the second quarter of last year to 62.2 percent in April-June of this year.

This means that the improvement in the employment rate was led by informal employmentboth from wage earners and the self-employed, the two sectors hardest hit by the pandemic and quarantine.

In line with the lifting of the mobility restrictions that were taken in the midst of the second wave of coronavirus, especially in the second quarter of last year, those employed with work from home explained 9.2 percent, against 17 .9 percent from twelve months ago.

Within the activity rate, there are increases for women and men aged 30 to 64 years of 2.1 percentage points (pp) and 2.2 pp, respectively. In the previous quarter, these rates were 69.2 and 89.7 percent, while in the second quarter they stood at 71.3 and 91.9 percent.

Within the employment rate, the increases of 2.4 pp (from 33.5 to 35.9 percent) for women between 14 and 29 years of age stand out, and of 2.3 pp (from 86.1 to 88.4 percent) for men aged 30 to 64.

As for the search time for unemployed people59.4 percent have been looking for work between 1 and 12 months, while 40.4 percent have been unemployed for more than a year.

Impact by educational level

When analyzing the educational level of unemployed people, it is observed that 67.9 percent have completed secondary education, and 32.1 percent have completed or incomplete higher education and university education. Among the employed, 60.1 percent have completed high school, while 39.9 percent have completed or incomplete higher education and university studies.

Regarding the qualification of the main occupation, 52.3 percent corresponds to an operational job; 17.8 percent at a technical level; 18.8 percent are unskilled; and 10.0 percent to the professional category.

Impact by region

With regard to the main urban agglomerations, the highest unemployment rate was registered in Córdoba with 8.7 percent; Mar del Plata, 8.6; and Greater Buenos Aires, 8.5 percent. They were followed by Neuquén, 7.8 percent; Santa Rosa, 7.4; Santa Fe, 7.3; Tucuman, 7.2; and Salta, 7 percent, all above the national average.

The flip side was the low levels of unemployment observed in the Viedma-Carmen de Patagones complex, 0.8 percent; Santiago del Estero-La Banda, 1.3; Comodoro Rivadavia-Rada Tilly, 1.6; Inns, 2.6; Formosan, 2.7; Saint John, 3; Rio Gallegos, 3; Great Catamarca, 4.2; Great Rosary 4.3; Gran Paraná 4.4, and Gran La Plata, 4.5 percent, among others.