Despite the location and the fiscal benefits that in some cases the countries of the region offer, the lack of education of the population will be the main barrier to continue attracting large investments.
The lack of guarantee of finding the competent and sustainable human capital necessary for the proper operation of companies is an issue that negatively influences the attraction of important investments in Central America.
Although new jobs will emerge, technological changes will have a strong impact in the Central American region, where there is a high proportion of jobs with a high risk of automation.
According to forecasts made by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), in 2018 it was estimated that 75% of workers in Guatemala and El Salvador are in high-risk automation jobs.
Costa Rican employers report favorable hiring plans for the third quarter of 2018. 13% of employers expect to increase staffing levels, 4% anticipate a decrease, 82% forecast no change and 1% don’t know.
After the 3% decrease reported in the number of work contracts between the first quarter of 2017 and the same period this year, data accumulated up to April registered a 2% increase.
The Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic reported that between the first four months of 2017 and the same period this year, labor contracts registered at the national level grew by 1.6%, from 145,077 to 147,435.
For the third quarter of the year, 10% of companies in Guatemala plan to increase their hirings and 85% believe they will not make any changes.
ManpowerGroup presented the Employment Expectations Survey corresponding to the III Quarter of the year, and highlighted in the results is the fact that 4% of companies consultedforesee that staff reductions will be made in the coming months.
In the first quarter of the year, 69,291 work contracts were registered, which is equivalent to a fall of 3% compared to the 71,043 contracts reported in the same period in 2017.
The Ministry of Work and Labor Development reported that between the first quarters of 2017 and 2018, permanent contracts were the only types that registered an increase, rising from 17,804 to 19,117.
The electricity and agriculture sectors were responsible for the year-on-year increase of 4% registered in the number of workers affiliated with the social insurance scheme up to December 2017.
From a report by the Central Bank of Nicaragua:
The Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN) published on February 9, 2018 statistics on the labor market (employment and salary), corresponding to the month of December 2017.
Agriculture and electricity were the sectors that accounted for most of the year-on-year growth of 5% in the affiliation of workers to the social insurance scheme.
From a report by the Central Bank of Nicaragua:
On January 19, 2018, the Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN) published statistics on the labor market (employment and salary) for the month of November 2017.