Chile’s unemployment rate reaches 12.3 percent in the third quarter

Chile’s unemployment rate reached 12.3 percent in the July-September quarter, growing by 5.0 percent in 12 months, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) reported on Friday.
INE’s data, collected in its National Employment Poll, indicate that such unemployment rate is equivalent to 1, 844,792 layoffs since the Covid-19 pandemic entered the country in the first days of March.

Despite this high number of jobless, the results for that quarter reflect a slow trend in the decrease in unemployment, which in the June-August moving quarter was 12.9. Meanwhile, unemployment reached 13.1 percent in the May-July stage, the highest level since 2010, according to official data.

The poll also indicates that for the fourth consecutive period in the mobile series, unemployment among men was higher than among women, with 12.8 versus 11.6 percent.

The study unfolds that in reality the number of jobless is currently greater from the onset of the pandemic 15 percent of those formally employed have taken advantage of the Employment Protection law, which represents 455, 78 workers who are not working although they allegedly keep their jobs.

Meanwhile, the population outside the work force amounted to 28.4 percent, that is, those who are mostly not looking for work, but can work (potential workforce).