“An approach towards the context of the labor market of the young population in pandemic contexts (Covid-19)”

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, present worldwide since December 2019, has generated diverse changes in social conditions. One of the main fields affected is the labor market due to constraints imposed by social distancing and confinement policies that entail a reconfiguration of what work means and of the modalities in which it can be performed. The objective of this article is to present a contextual approach to the study of the pandemic’s impact on the labor market, specifically in relation to the young population in Mexico. The main sources of information include official data from international organizations and data provided by Mexico’s National Institute of Geography and Statistics (INEGI). Among the main conclusions reached is that this population sector, like other groups, is experiencing severe hardships due to the decrease in working hours, lower income, layoffs, and limited opportunities for obtaining new jobs, among others. These conditions open a discussion concerning the underutilization of the knowledge of young people who form part of the generations that were born and raised in an era dominated by the widespread use of information technologies. In the context of the pandemic, their knowledge is an intangible resource and asset for developing the labor market by, for example, fomenting teleworking.