On average for Brazil, unemployment rose to 8.8% in the first trimester, after scoring 7.9% in the immediately preceding three months. Despite the advance, the level is the lowest for the first quarter since 2015 (8%).
On the same basis of comparison, unemployment grew in the five major regions of the country. The highlight was the Northeast, where the rate increased by 1.4 percentage points, reaching 12.2%.
The data are part of the Continuous PNAD (National Household Sample Survey). The survey analyzes both the formal and informal labor market.
The IBGE pondered that, historically, the beginning of the year registers an increase in unemployment. The search for job vacancies is usually driven by factors such as the end of year-end temporary contracts.
According to Alessandra Brito, an analyst at the IBGE survey, the numbers signal this impact in 2023. “After a year in 2022 of recovery in the post-pandemic labor market, in 2023, it seems that the seasonal movement of increased unemployment at the beginning of the year is returning to the pattern of the historical series”, said Brito.
Economists estimate that the resumption of employment tends to lose speed this year. The projection is ociated with the scenario of deceleration of economic activity amid the context of high interest rates.
The Northeast (12.2%) continued with the highest unemployment rate among the regions in the first quarter, while the South (5%) had the lowest. Midwest (7%), Southeast (8.6%) and North (9.1%) complete the list.
Of the 10 states with the highest unemployment, 7 are states in the Northeast region. Bahia (14.4%) and Pernambuco (14.1%) stand out, with the highest rates in the country. The smallest were registered by Rondônia (3.2%), Santa Catarina (3.8%) and Mato Grosso (4.5%).
For Brito, the difference between the states can be ociated with the levels of informality. “Bahia and Pernambuco, as well as the Northeast region as a whole, have a greater weight of informal work (employment without a formal contract and self-employment without CNPJ), which makes the insertion in the labor market more volatile, and may generate pressure for demand for work”, says the IBGE analyst.
All states in the North and Northeast showed informality rates higher than the national average (39%), according to the institute.
The highest percentages were registered by Pará (59.6%), Amazonas (57.2%) and Maranhão (56.5%).
On the other hand, the lowest informality rates in the country were estimated in Santa Catarina (26.1%), Federal District (30.3%) and São Paulo (30.6%).
The IBGE survey also details the profile of the people most affected by unemployment in Brazil. According to the institute, unemployment remains higher for women and black and brown people.
In the first quarter, the unemployment rate was estimated at 10.8% for women and 7.2% for men. The difference remains in all regions.
In terms of color or race, unemployment among whites (6.8%) remains below the national average (8.8%), while blacks (11.3%) and browns (10.1%) remain above.
“The higher unemployment rate among women and among people of black and brown color is a structural pattern in Brazil, which the survey ends up reflecting. These populations are also overrepresented in informality, when compared to men and people of white color,” he said. Brito.