Sandra Pettovetto, Argentina's Minister of Human Capital
Argentina’s unemployment rate rose to 7.9% in the first quarter of 2025, the highest since the third quarter of 2021, up 0.2% from the first quarter of 2024 and 1.5% from the last quarter of 2024, report from the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) in Buenos Aires says.
The data, based on a survey of 31 urban areas covering 29.8 million people, estimates 1.7–1.8 million unemployed, the highest rate in nearly four years.
The employment rate was 44.4% (13.3 million people), with 42% in informal jobs and 36.3% lacking pension contributions.
Formal salaried jobs dropped by 200,000, informal by 100,000, while self-employment grew by 100,000.
Greater Buenos Aires saw the highest unemployment at 9.1% (9.7% excluding the capital), followed by the Pampas region at 7.4%. Patagonia had the lowest at 4.9%.
Joblessness was higher for women (9%) than men (7%), with 71.4% of the unemployed having up to high-school education.
About 67.8% sought jobs for less than a year, 32% for over a year. Economic reactivation occurred, but industries like construction and manufacturing saw job losses.
About The Author
