State-owned Banco Nacional and Banco de Costa Rica stated that the increase comprises temporary positions for vacation and sickness cover, in addition to some short-term contracts for specific projects.

BAC San José, Popular and HSBC were the banks that had to let go of most personnel, with 67, 61 and 38 jobs lost respectively.

At a national level the Costa Rican Social Security Institute (CAJA) reports that between September 2009 and April 2010 57,000 new jobs were created, of which 61% (35,000) were generated in private companies.

Source: elfinancierocr.com

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Costa Rica: Hiring Expectations Go Down

December 2019

For the first quarter of 2020, 7% of the companies consulted plan to reduce their payrolls, and only 10% plan to increase them.

Employers in Costa Rica report slow growth in their hiring plans for the first quarter of 2020. According to Manpower, 10% of companies are contemplating an increase in their workforce, 7% anticipate a decrease and 82% remain unchanged.

Costa Rica: Slight Improvement in Recruitment Expectations

September 2019

Although by the fourth quarter of 2019, 13% of companies are expected to increase their payrolls, the proportion that anticipates a decrease went up to 11%.

13% of employers expect an increase in their workforce, 11% anticipate a decrease and 74% remain unchanged, resulting in a Net Employment Trend of +2%, explains the ManPower report.

Costa Rica: Hiring Expectations

September 2018

For the fourth quarter of 2018, 10% of companies in the country expect to increase their payrolls, 85% do not foresee changes and 4% anticipate a reduction.

From a report by the ManpowerGroup :

Employers in five regions foresee an increase in their workforce during Q4 2018. Employers in Heredia report the strongest hiring intentions with a Net Employment Outlook of + 11%. On the other hand, employers in San José and Cartago report a moderate hiring activity with Trends of + 9%, while the Tendency for Alajuela is located at + 8%. Employers in Guanacaste anticipate a slight increase in their workforce with a Trend of + 4%, however, in Puntarenas & Limón, hiring levels are expected to fall, reporting a Trend of -3% 

Costa Rica: Formal Employment Rate Goes Down

September 2011

The rate at which jobs are created in the country has declined in the last nine months.

The sectors that have been affected the most are trade and agriculture, as opposed to the construction sector, which has shown an upturn and is expected to show further growth in the remainder of the year.