Overview
- Analysts using INDEC EPH microdata comparing the first quarter of 2025 with the first quarter of 2026 found about 213,000 more occupied people while subemployment rose by roughly 192,000, showing more jobs but weaker hours and pay.
- Informality climbed to about 44.2% as new hires concentrated in Monotributo, independent work and unpaid or short‑hour roles, so most additions lack formal protections and benefits.
- More than nine in ten people who found work over the past year report they still need more hours to reach adequate income, a sign that new jobs are not restoring household purchasing power.
- UNDAV data show large losses in registered private‑sector jobs—around 369,463 roles lost between December 2023 and March 2026—while gains clustered in capital‑intensive sectors like agriculture, mining and finance rather than labor‑heavy industries.
- The government says it will expand credit access, especially for construction, to try to translate macro stability into job‑rich growth, but researchers warn uneven sectoral and provincial gains and falling real wages risk prolonging household strain and political fallout.