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By Brasil 247 - Brazil's labor market reached a historic milestone in the quarter ended in November 2025, with the unemployment rate dropping to 5.2%, the lowest level since the beginning of the continuous household survey series in 2012. The result reflects the expansion of employment and a broad improvement in income indicators.

The data come from the Continuous National Household Sample Survey (PNAD Contínua), released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), and indicate a consistent decline in unemployment both compared with the previous moving quarter and with the same period of 2024.

The unemployed population was estimated at 5.6 million people, the smallest contingent in the historical series. This represents a drop of 7.2% compared with the previous quarter and a sharp decline of 14.9% year on year, reinforcing the downward trend in joblessness.

At the same time, the number of employed people reached 103.0 million, setting a new record. Employment grew 0.6% in the quarter and 1.1% compared with the same period last year. As a result, the employment rate rose to 59.0% of the working-age population, the highest level ever recorded.

Broader indicators of labor market slack also improved. The composite underutilization rate of the labor force fell to 13.5%, the lowest in the historical series. The underutilized population totaled 15.4 million people, the smallest figure since the end of 2014, with declines both quarterly and annually.

The number of discouraged workers fell to 2.6 million, the lowest since 2015, down 12.9% compared with 2024. Discouraged workers accounted for 2.3% of the potential labor force, signaling fewer people giving up on finding a job.

Formal employment and public sector jobs also reached record levels. The number of private-sector employees rose to 53.0 million, the highest in the series. Workers with formal contracts totaled 39.4 million, also a record, with annual growth of 2.6%. Employment in the public sector reached 13.1 million, increasing both quarter on quarter and year on year.

Self-employed workers totaled 26.0 million, remaining stable in the short term and rising 2.9% compared with 2024. The informality rate declined to 37.7% of the employed population, below levels observed in previous periods.

Income indicators strengthened further. Average real monthly earnings from all jobs reached R$ 3,574, the highest value in the series, up 1.8% in the quarter and 4.5% year on year. The real wage bill also hit a new record, totaling R$ 363.7 billion, with increases of 2.5% in the quarter and 5.8% compared with a year earlier.

By sector, employment growth in the quarter was concentrated in public administration, defense, social security, education, health and social services. On an annual basis, transport, warehousing and postal services also recorded gains. Average earnings increased quarter on quarter only in information, communication and financial, real estate, professional and administrative activities, while year-on-year growth was observed in agriculture, construction, domestic services and the public sector.

Taken together, the figures point to a labor market marked by historically low unemployment, record employment and rising incomes, with declining underutilization and discouragement reinforcing the picture of a broad-based recovery in Brazil's job market.

(Reported by Brasil 247 on December 30, 2025)