Mexico records a rebound in formal employment during August 2026
The Mexican labor market showed signs of recovery by closing August with the creation of 38,319 new formal jobs, which represents a monthly growth of 0.2%. This figure reverses the negative trend observed during the month of July and consolidates a total of 281,397 positions generated so far in the year 2026, according to official figures from the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS).
With this result, the country reached a total of 22 million 798,473 workers affiliated with the IMSS, consolidating itself as the second highest figure recorded historically and the best data for an August. It is important to highlight that 87.1% of these positions correspond to permanent jobs, reaching a record figure of 19 million 860,128 positions.
Sectoral analysis and regional growth
In year-on-year terms, formal employment in Mexico experienced an increase of 1.5%, adding 343,556 jobs in the last twelve months. The sectors that led this dynamism were:
- Transport and communications, with an advance of 6.6%.
- Extractive industry, which recorded a growth of 4.7%.
- Social and communal services, with a rise of 3.7%.
Conversely, the agricultural sector showed an annual decline of 5.8%, while the manufacturing industry showed stability with no significant changes. Geographically, Baja California positioned itself as the state with the highest annual growth by reporting 8.5%, followed closely by Oaxaca with 6.4%.
Salaries and dynamics on digital platforms
The average base contribution salary stood at 673.1 pesos per day, maintaining historically high levels for the Mexican labor market.
Although the average nominal salary recorded an increase of 42.3 pesos per day compared to August 2025, a slight monthly decrease was observed compared to the July records. In parallel, the IMSS counted 1,011,239 employer registrations, a figure that showed a monthly reduction of 0.2%. The institute clarified that this variation should not necessarily be interpreted as the massive closure of companies.
Regarding the digital platform sector, a monthly decrease of 48,446 positions was reported, closing the month with 199,454 associated workers. However, in its year-on-year comparison, this sector maintains solid growth of 49.8%. Currently, formality driven by current reforms benefits a universe of 1,772,296 people, including domestic and independent workers.
