Colombia | Unemployment declined in March, but with a poor behavior of the labor market

Summary

In March, the unemployment rate declined, compared to February, but with a weak performance of the labor market. As of March 2021, it had recovered 79% of the 6.0 million jobs lost between February and April, the time of the worst labor market deterioration.

Key points

• Key points:
• In March, the national unemployment rate was 14.2%. Between February and March, seasonally adjusted data showed a reduction in the unemployment rate.
• The reduction in the unemployment rate occurred in the environment of a sluggish labor market, with employment and the labor force falling during the month.
• As of March 2021, there had been a recovery of 79% of the 6.0 million jobs lost between February and April, the time of the worst labor market deterioration, and 80% of the 4.6 million who had become unemployed between February and April had returned to the labor force.
• In March, the arts sector continued to be the sector most affected by the deterioration in employment. Sectorally, there was a deterioration in employment in the public administration, education and health sectors, which can be explained to some extent by the reduction in government salaried employment.
• The unemployment rate will reach, in 2021, lower levels than those observed at the end of 2020, however, without reaching pre-pandemic levels.

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