QCOSTARICA — The labor force participation rate, that is, the percentage of people participating in the labor force relative to the working-age population in Costa Rica, has continued to decline since 2021.
This is revealed by an analysis of data from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos de Costa Rica (INEC) – National Institute of Statistics and Census of Costa Rica, which on Friday released a summary of the results of the latest Encuesta Continua de Empleo – Continuous Employment Survey, conducted during the first quarter of 2025.
According to the INEC, the net participation rate between 2021 and 2024 fluctuated between 53.2% and 61.0%, with its highest point in the quarter of July, August, and September 2021.
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The annual participation averages, however, have been declining, with 60.3% in 2021, 59.8% in 2022, 55.4% in 2023, and 56.5% in 2024.
For the quarter of January, February, and March 2025, the net participation rate stood at 56.4%, which, while not showing statistically significant changes, does show that the downward trend has not been reversed.
The percentage of unemployed people, however, has shown a downward trend, explained precisely by the departure of thousands from the labor force.
According to INEC data, in 2021 the highest unemployment rate was in January, February, and March at 18.7%; in 2022 the peak was 13.6%, in 2023 it was 10.6%, and in 2024 it was 8.5%.
In the quarter of January, February, and March 2025, the unemployment rate stood at 7.5%, maintaining the same downward trend.
The INEC also detailed that for this quarter there were no significant changes in the employment rate (the number of people working relative to the working-age population), which stands at 52.2%, the unemployment rate, which remains at 7.5%, or the percentage of informal employment, which stands at 37.3%.
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Regarding underemployment, although no statistically significant changes were recorded, the situation did worsen when analyzed by gender.
Nationally, the INEC says 3.1% of the population is underemployed, specifically 2.2% of men and 4.6% of women, compared to only 3.9% in the same period last year.
Source: SemanarioUniversidad.com
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