The unemployment rate (14.7%) of the moving quarter from January to March 2021 hit a record in the time series started in 2012, with a high of 0.8 percentage points (pp) over the quarter from October to December 2020 and high of 2.5 pp against the same quarter of 2020.

The unemployed population (14.8 million persons) is also a record in the time series, growing 6.3% (880 thousand more employed persons) against the quarter from October to December 2020 (13.9 million persons) and growing 15.2% (1.956 million more persons) over the same moving quarter of the previous year (12.9 million persons).

The employed population (85.7 million persons) remained stable in relation to the previous moving quarter and fell 7.1% (6.6 million less persons) against the same quarter of 2020.

The employment-to-population ratio – percentage of employed persons in working age population – was estimated at 48.4%, decreasing 0.6 percentage points over the October to December (48.9%) and a drop of 5.1 pp in relation to the same quarter in 2020.

The composite underutilization rate (29.7%) rose 0.9 pp over the previous moving quarter (28.7%) and increased 5.3 pp over the same quarter of 2020 (24.4%).

 The underutilized population (33.2 million persons) grew in both comparisons: 3.7% (1.2 million more underutilized persons) compared with the previous moving quarter and 20.2% (5.6 more million persons) in relation to the same quarter in 2020.

The population outside the labor force (76.5 million persons) stood stable against the previous quarter and grew 13.7% (9.2 million persons) against the same quarter of 2020.

The discouraged population (6.0 million persons) is a record in the time series, holding steady against the previous moving quarter and growing 25.1% against the same period in 2020. The percentage of discouraged workers in relation to the  workforce or discouraged population (5.6%) stood stable over the previous moving quarter (5.5%) and rose 1.3 pp, in relation to the same period in 2020 (4.3%).

The contingent of employees in the private sector with a formal contract (excluding domestic workers) was of 29.6 million persons, remaining stable against the previous quarter and decreasing 10.7% (3.5 million less persons) over the same period of 2020.

The number of workers without a formal contract in the private sector (9.7 million persons) fell in both comparisons: 2.9% in relation to the previous quarter and 12.1% (1.3 million less persons) against the same quarter of 2020.

The number of self-employed workers (23.8 million) increases 2.4% over the previous moving quarter (565 thousand more persons) and stood stable in the annual comparison.

The category of the domestic workers (4.9 million persons) remained stable against the previous quarter but fell 17.3% (-1.0 million persons) against the same period in 2020.

The informality rate hit 39.6% of the employed population, representing a contingent of 34.0 million informal workers. This rate had been 39.5% in the previous moving quarter and 39.9% in the same quarter of 2020.

The average usual real earnings (R$ 2,544) remained stable in both comparisons. The average usual real wage bill (R$ 212.5 billion) held steady against the previous quarter and fell 6.7% against the same quarter of 2020 (15.2 billion less).

Unemployment rate - Brazil - 2012/2021

In the moving quarter from January to March 2021, the workforce (employed and unemployed persons), estimates at 100.5 million, stood stable against the previous moving quarter and dropped 4.4% (4.6 million less persons) against the same quarter of 2020.

The number of unemployed in all groups of activities stood stable over the quarter from October to December 2020.

Against the same moving quarter of 2020, there were drops in seven groups: General industry (-7.7% or 914 thousand less persons), Construction (-5.7% or 361 thousand less persons), Trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (-9.4% or 1.6 million less persons), Transportation, storage and mailing (-11.1% or 542 thousand less persons), Lodging and food (-26.1% or 1.4 million less persons), Other services (-18.6% or 917 thousand less persons), Domestic services (17.3% or 1.04 million less persons). The only high was in Agriculture (4.0% or 329 thousand more persons). The two remaining groups showed stability.

The number of employers (3.8 million persons) remained stable in relation to the previous moving quarter and fell 14.0% (616 thousand less persons) against the same quarter of 2020. The number of employers with CNPJ (3.095 million) is the lowest in the time series started in 2016, standing stable against the previous moving quarter and falling 13.7% (489 thousand less persons) in the annual comparison.

The categories of worker in the public sector (11.8 million persons), which includes statutory and military workers, decreased 2.9% (351 thousand less persons) over the previous quarter and stood stable in comparison with the same quarter in 2020.

The number of time-related underemployed (7.0 million persons) stood stable over the previous quarter and grew 8,7% (565 thousand more persons) over the same quarter of 2020.

Composite labor underutilization rate – Quarters from January to March – 2012/2021 (%)

As to the usual real wage bill against the previous quarter, there were not significant changes in the earnings of none of the ten activity groups.

Over the moving quarter from January to March of 2020, there were drops n the usual real earnings of three activity groups: Construction (-7.3%), Transportation, storage and mailing (-7.0%) and Domestic services (-3.9%). The other seven groups showed stability in this comparison.

Among the employment categories, against the previous quarter, there was only increase in the usual real average earnings of the Employees of the public sector without a formal contract (10.6%), with stability in the other categories.

Against the same quarter of 2020, there ere decreases in the earnings of Domestic workers (-3.9%) of Domestic workers with formal contract (-3.5%) and of the Domestic workers without a formal contract (-3.9%).  There was a high of 9.7% in the earnings of the Employers without a formal contract in the public sector. The other categories of employment did not have significant changes in earnings.