Overview
- The number of unemployed fell to 6.0 million in Q3 2025, the smallest contingent in the IBGE series.
- Labor underutilization dropped to 13.9%, a series low, with declines across all job-search duration bands and long-term unemployment down 17.8% to about 1.2 million.
- Unemployment decreased quarter over quarter in 16 of 27 states, though only Rio de Janeiro and Tocantins saw statistically significant declines.
- Rates ranged from 10.0% in Pernambuco to 2.3% in Santa Catarina and Mato Grosso, and ten states plus the Federal District set their lowest unemployment since 2012.
- Inequalities persisted, with unemployment at 6.9% for women versus 4.5% for men and 6.9% for Black people versus 6.3% for Pardo and 4.4% for white people, while youth joblessness edged up to 12.3%.