Young People, the Most Affected by Unemployment in Mexico

Before the pandemic began, most young people in Mexico already lived in precarious working conditions, being subject to low wages, few benefits and contracts under outsourcing systems. Now that COVID-19 has unleashed crises never seen before, 70 percent of Mexicans who lost their jobs are below 29 years of age, which represents a new problem for this sector, revealed Alianza Jóvenes con Trabajo Digno. Most of these cases are concentrated in the services and tourism sector, mainly in the states of Quintana Roo, Nayarit and Mexico City.

“The first people who were fired during this pandemic were young people. Of the formal jobs registered with IMSS that were lost in March, 70 percent were for young people up to 29 years of age. The loss of jobs is very serious for everyone but even more for young people who already had a higher level of unemployment before this health crisis,” said Andrea Méndez, Director of Fundación Forge México during a virtual press conference. 

"Before COVID-19 and this economic crisis, most young people who worked lacked sufficient wages, a stable contract, union affiliation and many suffer from underemployment or work excessive hours," she added. According to Alianza Jóvenes con Trabajo Digno, 67 percent of young people with jobs receive insufficient income to cover the cost of the basic food basket for a family of two, 31.61 percent lacked affiliation to social security, 7 percent were underemployed, 25 percent had long working days up to 48 hours a week and 43 percent did not have benefits.

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