The level of Brazilian formal employment – jobs with signed working papers – rose 6.55% in 2004, with the creation of 1,523,276 jobs, a record balance since the Ministry of Labor began its series, the General Register of Employees and the Unemployed (Caged), in 1992.
Even so, according to information provided by executive secretary of the Ministry, Alencar Ferreira, the figures fell short of the 1.8 million target set by the Minister of Labor, Ricardo Berzoini.
In December, 2004, the number of jobs with signed working papers decreased 1.4% in relation to November. This corresponds to a loss of 352,093 job openings.
This phenomenon is explained by December’s being a between-harvest period for activities in the agricultural sector, the decline in industrial employment, and the termination of temporary contracts in the teaching field with the end of the school year.
Industry in Brazil was the leader in job creation in the country in 2004. Data from Caged, at the the end of last year, showed that industry produced a net job creation (the difference between new hires and fires) of 616,347 formal posts (with signed working papers) between January and November, 2004, which corresponds to a 11.43% increase in comparison with 2003.
During the same period, the service sector registered a net gain of 536,404 job positions, followed by commerce (393,029), the agricutlural sector (204,798), construction (86,108), public service (22,527), and others (16,070).
The Monthly Employment Survey of the IBGE included six metropolitan regions: Recife, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Porto Alegre.
Among industrial segments, the Caged singled out the textile sector as the second biggest job creator, with a net hiring total of 80,885 between January and November, second only to the food and beverage sector (169,558), and ahead of sectors that traditionally generate jobs, such as metallurgy (53,866), and chemicals (51,223).
The textile sector includes industries responsible for raw materials – threads, fabrics, and others – as well as clothing.
Translation: David Silberstein
Agência Brasil
