Peru leads the layoff plan in Latin America: workforce reduction expected in second half of 2024

According to the report ‘Salaries and Hiring’ by Bumeran, a renowned employment portal in Latin America, which evaluates the opinion of Human Resources professionals on the labor panorama of the first semester and their expectations for the rest of the year, 41% of HR specialists in Peru plan to reduce staff during the remainder of 2024. On the other hand, 44% plan to maintain the same number of employees, and 15% are considering increasing it.

In the Latin American context, Peru leads the layoff forecasts, being the country with the highest percentage of Human Resources experts who plan reduce the number of employees in their companies in the second half of the year. Ecuador ranks second with a projected reduction of 37%, followed by Argentina with 30%, Chile with 29% and Panama with 25%.

By how much will the workforce be reduced in 2024?

71% of experts in Human Resources plan to increase their company’s workforce by between 10% and 20%. On the other hand, with regard to staff reductions, 27% expect a reduction of less than 10%, 24% are considering reducing it by 20% and 14% anticipate a reduction of 10%.

The Bumeran Salaries and Hiring study, in which 4,187 workers and Human Resources specialists participated, PeruArgentina, Chile, Ecuador and Panama, analyzes how talents and Human Resources specialists perceive government policies in the labor field, as well as the evolution of salaries and hiring in the first half of the year, and offers a projection for the remainder of 2024.

How many layoffs have there been so far in 2024?

So far in 2024, 74% of HR professionals have reported having carried out layoffsThis percentage is among the highest in the region, along with Chile, which reaches 77%. Ecuador follows with 69%, while Panama and Argentina register 67% and 65% respectively.

On the other hand, 50% of these specialists fired between 10% and 30% of their employees, while 34% indicated that the layoffs affected less than 10% of the workforce. As for the reasons behind these decisions, 41% attributed the layoffs to the need to reduce costs; another 41% linked them to poor job performance; and 31% mentioned the impact of the economic situation.

How does government impact the world of work?

55% of Human Resources experts believe that government policies in the work environment are of average quality. Furthermore, 49% anticipate that the labour market will develop moderately during the second half of the year.

Regarding the new labour policies implemented by the government, 45% of specialists rate them as average, while 40% consider them unfavourable or very unfavourable, and 15% rate them as favourable. No professional rated them as excellent.

As for the impact of these policies, 55% of experts consider it average so far, 35% see it as negative, and only 10% perceive it positively.

Source: Larepublica

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