At least 4.2 million people in Mexico are in the labor limbo of underemployment

Paulina Sánchez finds herself in what she calls “a gray space”, since she has a job, but her salary is not enough, so she needs to constantly look for new sources of resources. “Sometimes I work two or three days a week, but I'm always looking for more work on LinkedIn or outside with other clients,” says the 31-year-old accounting assistant in consulting.

Sánchez is part of the 4.2 million people in Mexico considered underemployed, that is, they work less than 35 hours a month and have the need and availability of more work, but who are part of the Economically Active Population (EAP). or employed, according to the latest National Occupation and Employment Survey (ENOE), published on Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi).

Although the population that has a job in the country is at one of its best moments, reaching 58.9 million people in January, there are still labor limbos, such as underemployment or the need to have a second job, or labor informality, which groups 54.4% of employees or 31.9 million people at the start of this year. Sánchez has a formal job, but frequently says he has “jobs outside,” and charges cash for occasional projects.

In the same case is Roberto Sánchez, who works in the audiovisual industry as a freelancer, who has seen his working hours progressively reduced. “I would like to work more, not only for more remuneration, but for occupational reasons, because it is good to have free time, but too much time doing nothing is not so pleasant,” says this 37-year-old professional.

Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Grupo Base, emphasizes the Non-Economically Active Population (PNEA), since the available population detailed in the ENOE is also known as “disguised employment” in reference to people who are not looking for work, but that they would accept one if it were offered to them. “Therefore, if people within the available population were considered unemployed, you would have a widespread unemployment rate,” says Siller. According to original figures from Inegi, in January, the extended unemployment rate stood at 10.39%, after registering 9.89% in December, while the labor underemployment rate showed a decrease of 7.63% in December to 7.08% in January.

However, the nuances of employment in the country can be contradictory, even for the analysts themselves. David Lozano Tovar, researcher at the Multidisciplinary Analysis Center (CAM) of the UNAM Faculty of Economics, indicates in an interview that although the unemployment rate registered its lowest level in historical terms, it does not reflect the improvement in the level of quality of employment. “It registers a worsening in the quality of hiring and obtaining social security of 6.5% according to CAM data, the increase in precarious employment contrasts with federal data,” he mentions.

The long shadow of informality

In Mexico there is work, but the quality of the jobs leaves much to be desired for those who study the subject. Although the percentage of people who receive a salary but do not have registration and other tax or social security benefits has decreased, it is a marginal decrease. Axel Eduardo González, data coordinator of Mexico, how are we doing?, says in an interview that although there have been improvements in employment indicators, informality continues to be one of the great pending issues. “Yes, there is progress, but it is, so to speak, restricted or very attenuated in the sense that we are only talking about a reduction of 0.8 percentage points (in the informality rate as of December 2023),” he comments.

For his part, the UNAM academic indicates that there is a discrepancy in the methodology in measuring the quality of employment, which has been highlighted on several occasions by the president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador. “If we consider the measurement with international parameters for informality by the International Labor Organization (ILO), there is a clear difference and wide discrepancy,” he mentions. “Historically, the labor market in Mexico had one of its best years in the 1970s, but Inegi's records do not contemplate a historical follow-up. It is true that there is a small improvement, but it does not compensate for the deterioration,” he indicates.

Paulina Sánchez says that it is better to have a low-paying job than to have no job at all. “Work is work, but it is true that companies need to provide better conditions for those of us who are in this situation, the freelance or the eventual ones,” he reflects. “Sometimes the only option you have is to be informal,” she concludes.

Subscribe here to the EL PAÍS México newsletter and receive all the key information on current events in this country

_