Unemployment drops to 9.3% and reaches 10.1 million in Brazil

The unemployment rate in Brazil dropped to 9.3% in the second quarter of 2022, informed this Friday (29) the IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics). It is the lowest level for the period since 2015 (8.4%), when the economy was going through recession.

The result was in line with financial market projections. Analysts consulted by the Bloomberg agency projected 9.3% in the median.

The rate was 11.1% in the first quarter, the most recent period in the comparable series. In the moving quarter from March to May of this year, the indicator had already been below 10%, estimated at 9.8%.

The number of unemployed, in turn, fell to 10.1 million in the second quarter. The contingent was at 11.9 million in the initial three months of 2022.

“The retraction of the unemployment rate in the second quarter follows a movement already observed in other years. In 2022, however, the sharpest drop in this rate was caused by the significant advance of the employed population in relation to the first quarter”, said Adriana Beringuy, coordinator of IBGE household sample surveys.

According to official statistics, the unemployed population gathers those who are out of work and continue to look for new vacancies. Those who do not have a job and are not looking for opportunities are not included in this calculation.

The data released by the IBGE are part of the Pnad Contínua (Continuous National Household Sample Survey). The survey portrays both the formal and informal labor market. That is, they are evaluated from jobs with a formal contract and CNPJ to the popular odd jobs.

Income drops 5.1% in one year

The population with some type of work reached 98.3 million in the second quarter. It is the highest level in the historical series, which started in 2012. There was a rise of 3.1% (3 million more people) compared to the previous quarter and 9.9% (8.9 million more) compared to the same period in 2021.

Even with the reduction of unemployment, the average income of Brazilians still shows signs of fragility. In the second quarter, the usual income from work was estimated at R$ 2,652. The value represents relative stability in relation to the three immediately previous months (R$ 2,625), according to the IBGE.

However, compared to the second quarter of 2021, there was a drop of 5.1%. At the time, the average income was R$2,794.

The mass of income, which is the sum of salaries, reached R$ 255.7 billion. This means an increase of 4.4% compared to the previous quarter and 4.8% compared to the same period last year.

“Although there is no increase in the average income of workers, there has been an increase in the mass of income because the number of people working is quite high,” said Beringuy.

Informal population hits record

The number of informal workers, estimated at 39.3 million, was also the highest in the historical series – records for this indicator started in the fourth quarter of 2015.

In comparison with the previous quarter, there was a growth of 2.8%, which represents more than 1.1 million people. This population includes workers without a formal contract, employers and self-employed workers without CNPJ, in addition to auxiliary family workers.

“There was a resumption of growth in the number of self-employed workers without CNPJ, which had fallen in the first quarter. In addition, other main categories of informality, which are employees without a formal contract in the private sector and domestic workers without a formal contract, continued to increase “, pointed out Beringuy.

In the formal labor market, the highest growth in absolute terms was registered in the private sector. The category rose 2.6% in the quarter, an increase of 908 thousand people. In the year, the increase was 3.7 million workers (11.5%).

After the shock generated by the pandemic, the job market is trying to recover in Brazil. According to Pnad, the number of unemployed reached 15 million at the beginning of 2021, as a result of the health crisis.

With the lifting of restrictions and the reopening of the economy, there was a process of returning to work, and unemployment began to decline.

The creation of vacancies, however, was marked by the fall in the average income of workers. The rise in inflation is pointed out as one of the issues responsible for leaner wages.

According to analysts, the recovery of employment finds risks in the scenario of the coming months. Still high inflation, higher interest rates and uncertainties about the electoral race threaten to affect economic activity in the second half of the year and, consequently, the generation of jobs.

Under pressure, the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government tries to stimulate the economy by releasing additional resources on the eve of the elections.