Unemployment rises slightly in the Recife Metropolitan Region.

PE247 – The unemployment rate in Recife (PE) closed the month of June at 6,5%, an increase of 1,1% for the year. According to the Monthly Employment Survey (PME), carried out in six metropolitan regions (MRs) and released this Wednesday (24) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the unemployment rate was 6% nationwide, equivalent to 1,5 million people, compared to 5,8% in the previous month and 5,9% in June of last year. The highest rate was recorded in the Salvador MR (8,8%) and the lowest in São Paulo (6,6%).

In Recife, 46,7% of the 3.336 people of working age were employed, while 3,3% were unemployed. According to the survey, all employment categories remained stable, except for those employed without formal contracts in the private sector, which showed a 12% decline in the May/June 2013 comparison. In the year-to-date figures, there was a 20,1% decrease in formal employment and a 24,8% decrease in the number of employers in the capital of Pernambuco.

Nationally, the survey indicated that the number of workers with formal employment contracts in the private sector remained stable (11,5 million) compared to May of this year, but, compared to June, it represented an additional 359 new jobs, an increase of 3,2%.

Furthermore, it was found that the average income of the employed population in the country was R$ 1.869,20 in June of this year, 0,2% lower than in the previous month (R$ 1872,03) and 0,8% higher than in the same period last year, which was R$ 1.854,13. The survey also indicated that the largest increase in average income compared to May 2013 occurred in the Construction sector (1,6%) and the largest decrease in the Extractive, Manufacturing and Electricity, Gas and Water Distribution Industry (-1,7%). 

According to statistics, in the May/June 2013 comparison, average annual income rose in Recife (3,3%), Porto Alegre (3,2%) and Salvador (0,9%), remained stable in Rio de Janeiro and fell in Belo Horizonte (4,0%) and São Paulo (0,6%). In comparison with June 2012, there was a decrease in Belo Horizonte (5,1%), Salvador (4,5%) and Recife (3,2%), while an increase occurred in Porto Alegre (6,3%), Rio de Janeiro (3,6%) and São Paulo (1,3%).

In the classification by occupational category, also in comparison with the month of May, the largest increase in average income occurred among military personnel and public employees (0,7%), reaching R$ 3.131,00. The largest decrease occurred in the category of employees without formal contracts in the private sector (-2,7%), reaching R$ 1.403,92. In comparison with June 2012, the largest increase in average income occurred among employees without formal contracts in the private sector (4,2%), representing an income of R$ 1.367,40, and the most significant decline was in the category of military personnel and public employees (-2,7%), reaching R$ 1.595,50.

The survey was conducted in the metropolitan regions of São Paulo (SP), Recife (PE), Salvador (BA), Belo Horizonte (MG), Porto Alegre (RS), and Brasília (DF).