Recorded private-sector employment in Argentina fell in July in the monthly and year-to-year, while the dismissal rate reached its highest level of the year so far.
The data, which can be found in the Work Indicators Survey (EIL in Spanish) prepared by the Human Capital Ministry, underlines the challenges facing businesses and firms.
Contrary to June, which saw a slight expansion, the seventh month of the year saw a monthly 0.2-percent fall in private-sector employment level recorded in companies with more than 10 workers in all surveyed urban agglomerations. The reduction was the same in all cities outside Greater Buenos Aires (negative 0.2 percent).
In terms of activity per sector, the report warned that “industrial employment stayed the same as last month, while in the rest of sectors negative variations were observed.”
The biggest fall in private employment was seen in construction, financial services and companies (both down 0.5 percent). In turn, employment in the transport, storage and communications sector dropped 0.3 percent, while trade, restaurants and hotels fell 0.2 percent.
Year-to-year, there was also a 0.2-percent contraction seen. Compared to previous years, activity also down in the annual comparison, down to levels seen in years 2018 and 2019.
The hiring of staff, measured by entry rate, remained constant with respect to June (1.8) while dismissals, measured by exit rate, increased by 0.5 percentage points and are at 2.0.
The EIL report therefore argued that “the expansion in the drops in staff in a context in which hirings are maintained accounts for the net employment level observed in July.”
In this context, both dismissals without cause and suspensions in recorded private employment increased slightly in July compared with the previous month.
Dismissals without cause in recorded private employment in July numbered 0.6 for every 100 workers, “which meant a slight increase compared with the previous month, the highest value of the year.”
Year-to-year, dismissals rose slightly as against July 2024; and compared with July in previous years, it is the highest value since July 2016.
Suspended employment increased slightly in July compared to June at 0.4 suspensions for every 100 workers. In turn, the number of companies applying suspensions climbed in July, at 6.0 percent, reaching “a level higher than July of the previous three years.”
This outlook also took place in June via what was reported by the Argentine Comprehensive Social Security System (SIPA in Spanish), where it was specified that in said month wage-earning employment in the private sector reached 6,241,000 people, a -0.2-percent variation from the previous month (12,000 fewer workers). Within the semester, 71,000 workers joined the private sector.
In this context, the gross nominal salary in June 2025 was 2,380,439 pesos with a 46.2-percent increase compared to the same month the previous year. In turn, the median gross salary was 1,876,003 pesos, a 49-percent year-to-year increase.
From the government they stressed that “the average salary of recorded private employment grew in real terms for the second month in a row in July 2025, with a monthly 0.7-percent rise,” highlighting that “it managed to recover part of the purchasing power lost in March, April and May.”
In this respect, they pointed out that “in addition to the 1.1-percent increase experienced in June, two months of recovery are being accumulated, with a total improvement of 1.8 percentage points in the purchasing capacity of salaries.”
– TIMES/NA
