Argentina’s job market shrinks as labour lawsuits soar

Argentina · Economy

Key Facts

Record lawsuits:The Unión de Aseguradoras de Riesgos del Trabajo (UART), the workplace-risk insurers’ trade body, projects 137,800 new labour lawsuits for 2026, based on press reports. 72,525 cases were filed from January to July 2026.
Jobs lost:More than 235,000 private registered salaried jobs disappeared between November 2023 and April 2026, a 3.7% drop. Public employment fell about 73,000, for a net loss near 180,000.
Weak retention:Only 76 of every 100 private registered salaried workers are still in the same job after 12 months—the weakest level in a decade.
Informality rise:The share of informal workers hit 44.2% in the first quarter of 2026, according to INDEC, the national statistics agency. That’s a record high, meaning nearly half of workers lack formal protection.
Notifications surge:The system recorded 135,400 labour-law notifications over the last rolling 12 months, a sign of rising disputes.
Exchange rate:The Argentine peso closed at 1,487.75 per US dollar on 14 August 2026, so these figures translate into real economic pressure.

Formal work is thinning out, with record lawsuits and a record share of workers in the informal economy.

If you’re watching Argentina’s economy from abroad, the formal job market is sending a clear warning. Only 76 of every 100 registered private workers keep the same job a year later, and the system is bracing for a record 137,800 new labour lawsuits in 2026.

A record wave of labour lawsuits

Argentina’s formal job market is facing a surge of legal disputes. The UART, the workplace-risk insurers’ trade body, projects 137,800 new labour lawsuits for 2026, according to press reporting from 14 August 2026. That’s a record, and it’s up from the 72,525 new cases already filed in the first seven months of the year.

The same reporting notes 135,400 labour-law notifications over the last 12 rolling months. That’s a heavy load on a system already strained by economic uncertainty.

For comparison, the peso is trading around 1,487.75 per US dollar (as of 14 August 2026), so the cost of litigation adds pressure on employers already facing high costs.

The surge is not evenly spread.That’s a regional hotspot in a national trend.

To put it in perspective, Argentina has 23 times more labour litigation than Chile, according to the same reporting. Even after labour reform, the caseload keeps climbing.

Why formal jobs are vanishing

The backdrop is a shrinking formal workforce. Between November 2023 and April 2026, more than 235,000 private registered salaried jobs disappeared, a 3.7% drop. Public employment fell about 73,000 over the same period, leaving a net loss near 180,000 jobs.

Only 76 of every 100 private registered salaried workers stay in the same job after a year—the weakest retention rate in a decade. That means more turnover, more instability, and more reasons for workers to seek legal recourse when they lose their posts.

The trend isn’t just about headlines. It reflects a slow grind: businesses cutting back, workers shifting to informal arrangements, and the state struggling to keep up.

The broader picture is stark.7% of the national workforce is in a situation of ‘labour vulnerability,’ meaning precarious employment or insufficient income, based on first-quarter 2026 data.

That aligns with the poverty data: poverty rose to 30% of the population in the first quarter of 2026, and indigence to 6.5%, according to another report.

Informality is now nearly half the workforce

Informal employment reached 44.2% of workers in the first quarter of 2026, according to INDEC, the national statistics agency. That’s the highest level in the recent series, up 2.2 percentage points from a year earlier.

This dual reality—more lawsuits among the formal, while more workers drop into the informal—suggests the system is pulling in two directions. Formal jobs become more expensive to maintain, so employers cut them, pushing workers into informal roles.

Informal workers have no registered contract, no social security contributions, and no legal protection if things go wrong. Nearly half of Argentine workers are in this situation, which means they have less income stability and less access to benefits, even as the formal sector struggles.

For investors, this fragility matters: a weaker formal workforce means lower tax revenue, less consumer stability, and a more volatile business environment.

Why the legal wave is a warning sign

The UART projection is an industry forecast, not an official government count. But the numbers are consistent with the 72,525 cases already filed in the first seven months of 2026, so the trend is credible.

A record wave of lawsuits raises the risk of higher costs for employers, which can feed into prices or job cuts. The rise in informality means more people outside the social safety net, which can hit consumption and public finances.

The system is also seeing the flip side: courts are pushing back on some claims. In one case from Resistencia, a judge dismissed a worker’s lawsuit and ordered him to pay the employer’s legal costs, calling the claim ‘manifestly unfounded.’

That suggests some legal activity may be speculative, but the sheer volume still weighs on the system.

What this means for you

If you’re living in or invested in Argentina, this isn’t abstract. A record wave of lawsuits raises the risk of higher costs for employers, which can feed into prices or job cuts. The rise in informality means more people outside the social safety net, which can hit consumption and public finances.

For those with exposure to Argentine stocks or bonds, watch the labour market. The trend is clear: formal employment is thinning, and the legal system is getting busier. That’s a signal of stress, not stability.

The data is based on UART projections via press reports, not official government statistics, so treat it as an industry view. But the direction is consistent with a broader picture of economic strain.

The peso’s slide—now at 1,487.75 per dollar—makes everything more complicated, from litigation costs to the real value of wages. Keep an eye on the next few months: if the caseload keeps climbing, expect more pressure on employers and more workers falling into the informal economy.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the UART and why does its projection matter?

UART is the Unión de Aseguradoras de Riesgos del Trabajo, the trade body for workplace-risk insurers in Argentina. They track labour lawsuits because they’re responsible for insuring against workplace accidents and disputes. Their projection of 137,800 lawsuits for 2026 is based on industry data, reported by press, and signals rising formal-sector friction.

How does the 44.2% informality rate affect the average worker?

Informal work means no registered contract, no social security contributions, and no legal protection if things go wrong. Nearly half of Argentine workers are in this situation, which means they have less income stability and less access to benefits, even as the formal sector struggles.

Is the 137,800 lawsuits figure an official government statistic?

No. It’s a projection from UART, based on industry data, and reported by the press. It’s not a government or regulator figure. The number is consistent with the 72,525 cases filed from January to July 2026, but treat it as an industry forecast, not an official count.

What does the 76-out-of-100 retention rate tell us?

It means that for every 100 private registered salaried workers, only 76 are still in the same job after 12 months. That’s the weakest rate in a decade, showing that job stability is eroding. High turnover can lead to more lawsuits and more informality, as workers lose formal posts and move to informal ones.

Sources: Aumentam os processos trabalhistas e projetam quase 138.000 ; Crecieron los juicios por riesgos del trabajo; Radiografía de la crisis económica: Dos empleos para …; Demandas laborales alcanzan 72.525 en 2023 pese a reforma de; Alerta laboral en Argentina: cada vez es más difícil conserv

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