Civil organizations in Mexico have called on the government to implement public policies that contribute to reducing labor informality in the country, which affects 53% of workers and has become a pillar of the national economy. According to Alexandra Haas, executive director of Oxfam Mexico, labor informality is not a personal choice but a consequence of failures in the labor system and a persistent injustice in the nation.
During the presentation of the report titled 'The Labyrinth of Informality: Myths, Traps, and Realities' prepared by 'Mexico, How Are We Doing?' and Oxfam Mexico, it was highlighted that future public policies must significantly impact working conditions for workers, facilitating their transition to the formal market and ensuring their access to appropriate social and legal protection.
The report reveals significant differences in labor income between formal and informal jobs. While in a formal job the average monthly income is 13,011.20 pesos (647.64 dollars), in an informal one it is reduced to almost half, reaching only 6,924.5 pesos (about 344 dollars). This means that the average income in labor informality barely covers 1.5 basic baskets, according to the document.
It is also emphasized that labor informality disproportionately impacts women, who represent 55.6% of the informal labor force and have less access to paid jobs. Women tend to be more present in precarious jobs, such as domestic work, and work almost double the unpaid hours compared to men, who earn 2.4 times more in formal jobs, according to the research.
One of the report's objectives is to debunk misconceptions about labor informality, such as the idea that all employees in this situation engage in illegal activities, do the same work, or do not pay taxes. According to the report, 27.8% of people in this condition work in the informal sector, 13.5% in businesses, government, and institutions, 9% in the agricultural sector, and 3.9% in paid domestic work.
