On Tuesday, December 3, 2024, the National Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane) released the productivity figures, in the midst of the discussion to increase the minimum wage in 2025.
According to the entity, the Total Factor Productivity (TFP) was 1.73%, while labor productivity per hour worked reached 3.43%. Furthermore, labor productivity per person employed was 1.76% and an average productivity of 3.14% was reported, reflecting a positive trend in terms of efficiency.
However, the figures did not generate much confidence in different sectors and Bruce Mac Master, president of Andi; Luis Fernando Mejía, Executive Director Fedesarrollo; and José Igancio López, president of Anif, sent a letter to Piedad Urdinola Contreras, director of Dane, requesting a technical review of the productivity data.
What are they asking about productivity?
“According to preliminary data presented by Dane, labor productivity would have increased more than 3% in the first three quarters of 2024, and total factor productivity increases 1.73%. These figures contrast significantly with the context current national economy. According to the most recent reports, for the first nine months of the year, economic growth was 1.6% and employment increased on average 0.7% during this same period, which would imply an improvement in productivity. of 0.9%,” explained the managers.
Minimum wage discussions 2025.
They added that the “mismatch between macroeconomic indicators and the figure reported by Dane”
generates concerns that merit a more detailed technical analysis, which is why they requested the Productivity Subcommittee:
– Generate a space to carry out a technical review with Dane on the methods, assumptions and data used to calculate productivity.
– Invite other specialized entities, such as Fedesarrollo and Anif, to present their own calculations and analysis on this key indicator, in order to enrich the debate with a comprehensive and diverse vision.
They requested the need to “ensure a robust technical discussion on productivity is crucial to adopting informed and balanced decisions that benefit both workers and employers. This dialogue, based on reliable data and rigorous analysis, will strengthen the legitimacy of the consultation process wage”.
And they concluded that “basing decisions on data that does not accurately reflect the national reality could generate adverse consequences for employment, formality and inflation control. We trust that this call will be accepted in the interests of transparency and the search for collective well-being”.
