According to research by Cepea (Center for Advanced Studies in Applied Economics), Esalq/USP, in partnership with Fealq (Fundação de Estudos Agrários Luiz de Queiroz), the population employed in Brazilian agribusiness totaled 18.3 million in 2019, practically stable (slight increase of 0.8%, or 145 thousand people) compared to the previous year. The participation of agribusiness in the Brazilian labor market was 19.6% in 2019 – it is worth remembering that, in total, the employed population totaled 93.4 million people, an increase of 2% between 2018 and 2019.
This result, according to Cepea researchers, is linked to different behaviors between segments of the sector. The number of employees grew in the industrial (inputs and agroindustry) and agroservices segments, but remained stable in agriculture (with a non-significant drop).
PROFILE – Regarding the qualification of the workforce (or level of education), the upward trend seen in recent years continued in 2019. This movement is explained by the reduction in the number of poorly educated people working in agriculture, a reflection of modernization and concentration production, and the emergence of opportunities for a more qualified workforce in the segment and also before and after the gate.
A second trend that has been observed since 2015 also continued in 2019: an increase in informal employment. A third maintained trend was the increase in female participation in agribusiness. Between 2018 and 2019, while the number of men working in the sector remained practically stable (+0.25%), the total number of women grew by 2.02%, with an additional 114 thousand working in the various segments of agribusiness.
INCOME – As for salaries, there was real stability for employees and real increase for employers, in agribusiness and in Brazil as a whole. For self-employed workers, there was a real increase in agribusiness, but stability in the country.
Source: DATA
