Job insecurity surges: unemployment climbs as informal work hits 18-year high
The most recent data shows that polyworking is also growing, as well as the people who report having to work more hours La entrada Job insecurity surges: unemployment climbs as informal work hits 18-year high se publicó primero en Buenos Aires Herald .
Argentina's labor market experienced deterioration in the second quarter of 2026, marked by rising informality, growth of platform-based self-employment, and declining purchasing power. Unemployment rose to 7.9%, up 0.3 percentage points from previous years, adding 73,000 job seekers to the 1.2 million unemployed. Four out of 10 unemployed are recent job seekers.
Despite 265,000 jobs being created, the increase in labor market participation resulted in a net increase of 73,000 unemployed people. Informality among salaried workers rose to 37.9%, the highest level in almost 18 years, with 348,000 new informal jobs. Self-employed workers now make up 25.5% of the workforce, an 1.8% increase.
This shift, driven by self-employment tax regime and gig economy, coincides with a decline in salaried employees, now constituting 70.5% of the workforce. Rising working hours and deteriorating purchasing power further underscore the labor market's challenges.
Written by urgent.news from Buenos Aires Herald's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- Job insecurity surges: unemployment climbs as informal work hits 18-year high buenosairesherald.com
