In the fourth quarter of the previous year, Argentina’s labour informality rate was recorded at 43 percent, indicating that over four out of ten workers are engaged in employment that lacks the protections of applicable labour, tax, and social security laws. The INDEC national statistics bureau announced on Wednesday that the unemployment rate increased to 7.5 percent in the last quarter of 2025. The agency reported a year-on-year increase in the unemployment rate of approximately one percentage point. The findings originate from a report, generated by the Employment, Distribution and Labour Institutions Area of the Interdisciplinary Institute of Political Economy at the University of Buenos Aires Faculty of Economics.
The study indicates that 32 percent of informal workers reside in poor households, with an additional 27 percent classified as vulnerable to descending into poverty. The data indicates that 70% of individuals aged 16 to 24 are engaged in informal employment, highlighting the challenges this demographic encounters in accessing the labor market. Individuals in the younger demographic encounter a notably elevated rate of informality compared to their older counterparts. In the third quarter of 2025, the rate for this group was recorded at 67.4 percent, which is almost 24 percentage points above the overall rate.
In contrast, the informality rate is lowest among workers aged between 45 and 64 (60 for women), standing at 34.2 percent. This is followed by the age group of 25 to 44, which has an informality rate of 42.2 percent, and those aged 65 and over, who exhibit a rate of 57.8 percent. The highest incidence of informality is observed at both the onset and conclusion of one’s working life. The majority of informal workers are situated in Greater Buenos Aires.
The informality rate in Argentina, which aligns with figures observed in the second quarter of 2008, has exhibited a stubbornly elevated trend for 17 years. In a comparison of nine Latin American countries, a region noted for its labour informality and precarious employment, Argentina occupies the fourth position, trailing behind Chile, Brazil, and Costa Rica.