Labour market indicators

Unemployment rate in 2001: 9.8% (ILO data)

Working population:

Employment by sector:

Employment contracts
Employment contracts are regulated by legal clauses and to a lesser degree by collective agreements and individual negotiations.
The terms employment contracts are extremely rigid.

Salaries

National monthly minimum wage as of 01/01/2003: varies beetween US$ 2.45 and US$ 4.55 by day

Average wage for a employee in the manufacturing industry in 1998: 7734 pesos by  month (ILO data)

Social security contributions

Employer: 5,6 %.

Employee: 3.76 %.

Number of hours

Legal definition of full time work (per week): 40 or 48 hours

Retirement age: 60

Unions

Average rate of union membership:5 %.

Unions: The two main groups of trade unions are TUCP and FFW. They are affiliated to the international Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU ) and to the Worldwide Confederation of Labour ( WCL).

Useful links

For further informations on the labour market, check out the following web sites:

- International Labour Organization (ILO): studies, statistics and reports on working conditions and labour markets

- NATLEX : ILO database on national labour laws

- Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics (BLES)

- Department of Labor and Employment