Panama labor contracts are down 30 percent

In spite of the economic recovery labor contracts in Panama have fallen by 30%  when compared with  2019.

According to figures from the Ministry of Labor (Mitradel), from January to May 2023, 120,258 new contracts were registered , 30% less than the 171,537  agreements processed in 2019.

The contracts registered in the country cannot be interpreted in their entirety as new jobs, since they are a mixture of a new labor agreement or vacancies that can follow a dismissal or a resignation.

When the first five months of this year are compared with the same period in 2022, a 23% increase in job registrations is reflected, which would demonstrate the economic recovery registered in recent years, but this has not been enough to recover all the lost jobs.

Most of the new registered contracts also continue with the temporary trend. Considering only the agreements registered at the Mitradel headquarters, which total 40,307 from January to May, some 20,260 are for a defined period and another 7,036 for completed work.

Before the pandemic, the Panamanian economy was not generating enough employment compared to the growth in the available labor force. And when covid-19 arrived, in March 2020, the problems of which there are still sequels worsened.

In the labor market, work contracts were progressively suspended until reaching a cumulative 284,209, the working day was reduced in some companies and job losses were recorded, especially in small companies.

The fact that more than 80% of those who lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic had 11 or fewer years of schooling has caused a high level of unemployment in people with educational weaknesses.

Unemployment
The government of Laurentino Cortizo has proclaimed that the latest census data, published by the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC), indicate a reduction of one percentage point in the unemployment rate, which went from 9.9% in April 2022 to 8.9% in July 2023. But the full report is unknown.