Ministry of Labor says there is no crisis following revelation of unemployment rate

SANTIAGO.-  The Undersecretary of Labor, Mauricio Jélvez, has denied that the country is facing a possible crisis after it was announced that unemployment rose to 8.4% during the April-June trimester.

The unemployment rate has risen 1.5 percent over the last 12 months and 0.4 percent in comparison with the previous trimester.

Jélvez explained that the labor force continues to expand, which is causing the unemployment figure to go up. “When an economy continues to grow, jobs continue to be created, we are not in a situation of crisis and we have a very special situation because people keep putting pressure on the work force and it continues to swell”, he stated during a conversation on the Radio Cooperativa program “Una Nueva Mañana”.

The undersecretary indicated that new job positions have been created, but said that the increase in the labor force has caused the unemployment rate to rise.

Nevertheless, Jélvez pointed out that “fortunately, in Chile, what we call salary-paid employment proportionally has grown more than other jobs”.  These positions are more likely to be higher quality jobs, “with better contracts, social protection, and more stability”, he said.