The unemployment rate was estimated at 6.4%, the lowest rate for April since the reformulation of the survey in 2002...

The unemployment rate was estimated at 6.4%, the lowest rate for April since the reformulation of the survey in 2002. It was also stable in relation to March (6.5%).

Compared with April last year, the rate decreased by 0.9 percentage points. The unemployed population (1.5 million people) was stable in relation to the previous month. In relation to April last year, it displayed a drop of 10.1% (less 173 thousand people in this condition). The employed population (22.3 million) was stable in comparison with March. Against April of 2010, there was a rise of 2.3% in this estimate, accounting for additional 492 thousand employed persons in twelve months. The number of workers with a formal contract in the private sector (10.8 million) did not record a significant change in relation to March. In the comparison with April of 2010, there was an increase of 6.8%, accounting for additional 686 thousand jobs with a formal contract. The employed persons’ real average income usually earned (R$ 1,540.00), dropped 1.8% in the monthly comparison and rose by 1.8% compared with April a year ago. The volume of real income usually earned (R$ 34.7 billion) was 1.7% below the one registered in March and grew by 4.3% in relation to April of 2010. The employed persons’ volume of effective real income (R$ 34.5 billion) estimated in March of 2011 decreased by 1.6% in the month and grew by 4.1% in the year.

The Monthly Employment Survey is conducted in the metropolitan regions of Recife, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Porto Alegre. The complete publication can be accessed at www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/indicadores/trabalhoerendimento/pme_nova/.

Unemployment remains stable in the six regions surveyed

Regionally, the unemployment rate did not record a significant change in the metropolitan regions when compared with March of 2011.

Compared with April 2010, lows were registered in Recife (1.6 percentage points), in Rio de Janeiro (1.1 percentage points) and in Porto Alegre (0.8 percentage points), and stability was registered in the remaining regions.

Compared with April last year, the number of unemployed persons displayed a significant change in the Metropolitan Regions of Recife and of Rio de Janeiro, with drops of 16.2% and 18.0%, respectively.

In relation to last March, there was no change in this estimate in the regions surveyed.

Employment level stays at 53.4%

Considering the employment level (proportion of employed people in relation to people in working age) estimated at 53.4% in April of 2011 in the six regions, there was no change in relation to last March, but there was a rise of 0.5 percentage points compared with April of 2010. Regionally, in the monthly comparison, all regions remained stable as to this indicator. Compared with April of 2010, there was a significant change only in Porto Alegre (a high of 2.6 percentage points).

The analysis of employment by group of activities showed that, between March and April, all groups remained stable. In the annual contrast, there was an increase in the number of workers in services rendered to enterprises, renting, real estate activities and financial intermediation, 5.6%; and in other services (

lodging, food, transportation, storage and communication, urban cleaning, activities of membership organizations, cultural and sporting activities and personal services), 5.4%.

In the annual comparison, average income increases in five of the six regions

The workers’ real average income usually earned, in the regional analysis and against March, dropped by 4.1% in Recife, 0.6% in Belo Horizonte, 3.3% in Rio de Janeiro

and 1.9% in São Paulo. It increased by 3.0% in Salvador and by 0.6% in Porto Alegre. Compared with April of 2010, there was a rise in Recife, 6.3%, Salvador, 2.0%, Belo Horizonte, 5.8%, Rio de Janeiro, 4.3% and Porto Alegre, 2.3% In São Paulo the income decreased by 1.0%.

Regarding the classification by groups of activities, the highest increase in the real average income usually earned against April of 2010 was in quarrying and mining, manufacturing industry and distribution of electricity, gas and water (5.7%).

In the per capita household income analysis, there was a rise of 3.3% compared with April a year ago. The highlight was Belo Horizonte (10.5%).