www.bne.cl<\/a>). Lanzada en el 2011, permite que los trabajadores suban sus curr\u00edculos y que las empresas promocionen vacantes. Cerca de 200.000 CV se han subido al sitio y se han promocionado 300.000 puestos de trabajo.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/BRUNO_BARANDA_1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nSin embargo, de todos modos hay una falta de mano de obra y en la industria de la construcci\u00f3n es particularmente grave. No solo el sector ha repuntado con fuerza de la debacle financiera global del per\u00edodo 2008-2009, con proyectos como el emblem\u00e1tico Costanera Center en Santiago de nuevo en marcha, sino que tambi\u00e9n ha recibido una inyecci\u00f3n de la reconstrucci\u00f3n tras el terremoto de febrero del 2010, que gener\u00f3 demanda de todo desde constructores y carpinteros hasta enlucidores y soldadores. El sector se expandi\u00f3 un 8% el a\u00f1o pasado y super\u00f3 a la econom\u00eda general en dos puntos porcentuales. A lo largo del pa\u00eds, las constructoras tienen problemas para encontrar los trabajadores que necesitan.<\/p>\n
\u201cEste es un problema que ha estado creciendo en los \u00faltimos dos a\u00f1os\u201d, afirma Carolin Carboni, gerente de personas de Besalco, firma constructora que emplea a 9.300 personas.<\/p>\n
\u201cHay una falta de calidad tambi\u00e9n\u201d, a\u00f1ade. \u201cLa gente que est\u00e1 disponible no tiene el entrenamiento ni las habilidades necesarias. Las escuelas t\u00e9cnicas han hecho lo mejor que han podido para adaptar su malla curricular para que satisfaga las necesidades de las empresas, pero a\u00fan hay una brecha\u201d.<\/p>\n
Sergio Cavagnaro, gerente general de la C\u00e1mara Chilena de la Construcci\u00f3n (CChC), se\u00f1ala que su sector \u201cya est\u00e1 en el pleno empleo\u201d y describe la situaci\u00f3n como \u201ccr\u00edtica\u201d. La c\u00e1mara est\u00e1 capacitando mujeres para que asuman empleos que antes est\u00e1n reservados para los hombres e incluso est\u00e1 analizando la posibilidad de contratar reos seg\u00fan esquemas de salida diurna.<\/p>\n
El problema no se limita en ning\u00fan caso a las constructoras. Minoristas como Walmart est\u00e1n teniendo dificultades para atraer y mantener personal, ya sean trabajadores sin calificaci\u00f3n para rellenar las estanter\u00edas de los supermercados o profesionales calificados para administrar la <\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/CCarboniBesalco_1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
compa\u00f1\u00eda.<\/p>\n
\u201cEn per\u00edodo de alto desempleo, la gente viene a nosotros en busca de trabajo, pero en tiempos de pleno empleo como ahora, es al rev\u00e9s\u201d, afirma Claudio Hohmann, gerente de asuntos corporativos de Walmart Chile. \u201cAhora, es la compa\u00f1\u00eda la que tiene que salir y buscar trabajadores\u201d.<\/p>\n
Hohmann afirma que Walmart, que emplea a 40.000 personas en Chile, se ha vuelto m\u00e1s proactiva. \u201cEstamos yendo a las universidades y exhibiendo a la empresa a gente joven, porque atraer talento se ha vuelto [algo] mucho m\u00e1s competitivo\u201d.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/CLAUDIO_HOHMANN.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
El ejecutivo explica que la rotaci\u00f3n de personal ha aumentado. Los j\u00f3venes est\u00e1n ahora en una posici\u00f3n envidiable: pueden dejar un trabajo apenas meses despu\u00e9s de haberlo conseguido e ir directo a otro, a menudo mejor remunerado.<\/p>\n
Muchas empresas se quejan de perder personal frente a grandes empresas mineras en el norte de Chile. \u201cLas mineras tienen la ventaja de que, a los m\u00e1rgenes a los que operan, pueden ofrecer salarios m\u00e1s atractivos\u201d, afirma Hohmann. \u201cLas minoristas operan con m\u00e1rgenes muy ajustados de modo que no podemos ofrecer siempre esa clase de salarios\u201d.<\/p>\n
No es una sorpresa entonces que los sueldos est\u00e9n subiendo. Seg\u00fan el INE, los salarios en Chile han subido un 6,6% en t\u00e9rminos reales desde el 2009 y el costo de la mano de obra se ha elevado en un 9%. La C\u00e1mara Chilena de la Construcci\u00f3n afirma que los sueldos en su sector se han incrementado en un 20% desde el 2009 e incluso m\u00e1s en el norte, donde el atractivo de las mineras es m\u00e1s fuerte. En su discurso del 21 de mayo, el presidente Sebasti\u00e1n Pi\u00f1era se\u00f1al\u00f3 que la inflaci\u00f3n salarial era del 6% al a\u00f1o, un 2,5% m\u00e1s que la inflaci\u00f3n de precios al consumidor. Esa es una buena noticia para los trabajadores, pero no es tan buena para las n\u00f3minas salariales.<\/p>\n
\u00a1M\u00e1s Trabajadores Por Favor!<\/strong><\/p>\nEntonces, \u00bfd\u00f3nde pueden encontrar estas empresas privadas m\u00e1s trabajadores a un precio razonable?<\/p>\n
Una respuesta obvia yace en el gran potencial de las mujeres de Chile. Situada cerca del 50%, el pa\u00eds tiene una de las tasas m\u00e1s bajas de participaci\u00f3n femenina en la fuerza laboral de todos los pa\u00edses de la Organizaci\u00f3n para la Cooperaci\u00f3n y el Desarrollo Econ\u00f3micos (OCDE), si bien ha mejorado en los \u00faltimos a\u00f1os.<\/p>\n
\u201cDado el nivel de desarrollo de Chile, esa tasa deber\u00eda ser a lo menos un 15 por ciento superior a lo que es\u201d, afirma Andrea Repetto. \u201cDesde ese punto de vista, Chile no est\u00e1 ni siquiera cerca del pleno empleo. A\u00fan hay mucho potencial para traer m\u00e1s trabajadores al mercado laboral\u201d.<\/p>\n
El Gobierno se\u00f1ala que est\u00e1 tratando de liberar ese potencial. El subsecretario Baranda apunta como ejemplo al programa Mujer Minera, lanzado en febrero de este a\u00f1o. El programa ofrece capacitaci\u00f3n a 2.000 mujeres de los sectores m\u00e1s pobres de la sociedad para ayudarles a encontrar trabajo en la industria minera.<\/p>\n
Pero a\u00fan hay obst\u00e1culos al empleo femenino, no solo las cl\u00e1usulas extremadamente generosas de permiso maternal, que hacen que algunas empresas sean renuentes a contratar mujeres. Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez de mandomedio.com afirma que ha notado una ca\u00edda en la cantidad de mujeres que han sido contratadas desde que esas cl\u00e1usulas se fortalecieron el a\u00f1o pasado.<\/p>\n
Algunas mujeres se\u00f1alan que les dar\u00edan ganas de trabajar si tuvieran mejor acceso al cuidado infantil, pudieran trabajar en un horario flexible, si los salarios fueran m\u00e1s altos o si el transporte p\u00fablico fuera mejor, permiti\u00e9ndoles llegar al trabajo m\u00e1s f\u00e1cilmente y por menos dinero. Hasta que estos distintos problemas no se aborden, el potencial latente de la fuerza laboral de Chile posiblemente se mantenga simplemente as\u00ed: latente.<\/p>\n
Otra posible fuente de mano de obra est\u00e1 fuera de las fronteras de Chile. Hay millones de desempleados europeos y latinoamericanos ansiosos de trabajar, quienes potencialmente podr\u00edan encontrar empleos ac\u00e1. Gonz\u00e1lez, cuya firma de headhunting tiene oficinas en Per\u00fa y Argentina adem\u00e1s de en Chile, sostiene que las empresas chilenas a menudo se muestran reticentes a importar mano de obra, pero que eso est\u00e1 cambiando, debido a la necesidad. Afirma que las empresas est\u00e1n comenzando a mirar a Espa\u00f1a, donde la tasa de desempleo es superior al 20%, en miras a reclutar potenciales profesionales bien calificados.<\/p>\n
No obstante, existe un l\u00edmite respecto de cu\u00e1ntos extranjeros pueden trabajar en una empresa en Chile. En la actualidad, una compa\u00f1\u00eda con 25 o m\u00e1s empleados en sus registros tiene que asegurar que al menos el 85% de su fuerza laboral est\u00e1 compuesta por chilenos.<\/p>\n
Cavagnaro de la CChC afirma que muchas constructoras querr\u00edan contratar m\u00e1s inmigrantes peruanos, bolivianos y colombianos, pero que no pueden por temor a violar la ley. \u201cEstamos hablando con el Ministerio del Trabajo sobre modificar esta norma\u201d, se\u00f1ala.<\/p>\n
No son solo los extranjeros los que est\u00e1n siendo atra\u00eddos a Chile por la posibilidad de trabajo. Los chilenos tambi\u00e9n. En momentos en que la situaci\u00f3n econ\u00f3mica en Europa sigue espantosa, muchos chilenos avecindados en esa regi\u00f3n est\u00e1n volviendo a su patria. \u201cMe llegan un mont\u00f3n de llamadas y CV de chilenos en Europa, que sienten que puede ser el momento para volver a casa\u201d, comenta Gonz\u00e1lez.<\/p>\n
Atrapados en la Edad de Piedra<\/strong><\/p>\nLa otra gran fuente de potencial mano de obra latente en Chile son los j\u00f3venes. Hay demasiados j\u00f3venes chilenos atrapados en sus casas, sin trabajo, los que dependen del respaldo financiero de sus padres.<\/p>\n
En este punto, la capacitaci\u00f3n es clave y el historial de Chile en esta \u00e1rea, lamentable. La ministra del Trabajo, Evelyn Matthei, reconoci\u00f3 recientemente que cuando se trata de capacitaci\u00f3n laboral, Chile est\u00e1 \u201cen la Edad de Piedra\u201d.<\/p>\n
El Servicio Nacional de Capacitaci\u00f3n y Empleo (SENCE) es la entidad estatal encargada de fiscalizar la capacitaci\u00f3n. El servicio ofrece una serie de subsidios, subvenciones y bonos a los empleadores y empleados para incentivar la capacitaci\u00f3n, con particular \u00e9nfasis en las mujeres, los j\u00f3venes y los pobres.<\/p>\n
El pilar central de la labor del SENCE es un esquema seg\u00fan el cual las empresas pueden postular a un cr\u00e9dito fiscal a cambio de entregar capacitaci\u00f3n a sus trabajadores. Las empresas deciden qui\u00e9n se capacita y c\u00f3mo.<\/p>\n
Pero existe un creciente consenso en cuanto a que el sistema est\u00e1 fallando. En noviembre pasado, una comisi\u00f3n de expertos encabezado por el economista Osvaldo Larra\u00f1aga public\u00f3 un irrefutable informe sobre la capacitaci\u00f3n en Chile, la que describe como \u201cclaramente deficiente\u201d y \u201cregresiva\u201d. Cerca del 27% de los fondos para capacitaci\u00f3n se destinaban al 20% m\u00e1s rico de la fuerza laboral, concluy\u00f3.<\/p>\n
El problema es que, demasiado a menudo, el dinero llega a grandes empresas con empleados que ya est\u00e1n relativamente bien capacitados. No siempre llega a las peque\u00f1as empresas que es donde m\u00e1s se necesita.<\/p>\n
M\u00e1s a\u00fan, debido a que las empresas pueden elegir el contenido de los cursos, tienden a concentrarse en habilidades no transferibles que son espec\u00edficas de sus propias necesidades. No les entregan necesariamente a los trabajadores las habilidades que los beneficiar\u00e1n m\u00e1s tarde en su vida.<\/p>\n
Finalmente, los cursos tienden a ser demasiado cortos: 19 horas en promedio en el 2010. Eso no es demasiado tiempo para ense\u00f1ar nada a nadie.<\/p>\n
La comisi\u00f3n de Larra\u00f1aga concluy\u00f3 que los cr\u00e9ditos fiscales del SENCE equivalieron a US$226 millones en el 2010, lo que representa el 80% del gasto p\u00fablico total en capacitaci\u00f3n. Los beneficios para las empresas eran claros, pero los beneficios para los trabajadores eran mucho menos.<\/p>\n
\u201cLa comisi\u00f3n hall\u00f3 que cerca de dos tercios del gasto p\u00fablico en capacitaci\u00f3n se canalizaba a iniciativas que no ten\u00edan ning\u00fan impacto en lo absoluto\u201d, sostiene Bravo, quien fue miembro de la comisi\u00f3n.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/DAVID_BRAVO_1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
El panel de expertos elogi\u00f3 algunos de los programas del SENCE, en particular los que se financiaban a trav\u00e9s del Fondo Nacional de Capacitaci\u00f3n (FONCAP), que apunta a j\u00f3venes y pobres. Sin embargo, se\u00f1al\u00f3 que su impacto era m\u00ednimo. En el 2009, por ejemplo, hubo 441.000 personas de entre 18 y 25 a\u00f1os de edad que estaban desempleados y que pertenec\u00edan al 40% m\u00e1s pobre de los hogares chilenos. De estos, solo 12.000, menos del 3%, recibieron capacitaci\u00f3n financiada por el FONCAP.<\/p>\n
Dicho sea a su favor, la ministra Matthei se ha tomado en serio las recomendaciones de la comisi\u00f3n y se comprometi\u00f3 a enviar un proyecto de ley al Congreso para modernizar la capacitaci\u00f3n laboral en Chile.<\/p>\n
Francisco Ag\u00fcero, quien fuera director nacional del SENCE y ahora es jefe de su departamento de Empresa y Empleo, sostiene que a\u00fan no se ha tomado una decisi\u00f3n sobre si se establece una reducci\u00f3n progresiva de los cr\u00e9ditos fiscales, como recomend\u00f3 la comisi\u00f3n. \u201cSe est\u00e1 debatiendo y analizando\u201d, afirma.<\/p>\n
Pero ya sea que se descarte o no, el \u00e9nfasis claramente se est\u00e1 alejando de los cr\u00e9ditos fiscales hacia otros programas del SENCE.<\/p>\n
\u201cLa ministra est\u00e1 interesada en particular en un nuevo programa denominado Formaci\u00f3n para el Trabajo o FOTRAB, que ofrece cursos de capacitaci\u00f3n mucho m\u00e1s largos, de entre 500 y 600 horas, y apunta a j\u00f3venes de los quintiles m\u00e1s pobres\u201d, se\u00f1ala Ag\u00fcero.<\/p>\n
La capacitaci\u00f3n de esa duraci\u00f3n requiere dinero, pero el gobierno parece comprometido a encontrarlo. Con US$57 millones, el presupuesto del FOTRAB para este a\u00f1o es un 162% superior al del a\u00f1o pasado y otros programas del SENCE tambi\u00e9n han recibido un provechoso financiamiento.<\/p>\n
Mientras ese siga siendo el caso hay esperanzas de que los trabajadores chilenos del futuro estar\u00e1n mejor dotados para hacer su trabajo, pero eso no resolver\u00e1 el problema de corto plazo de c\u00f3mo encontrar trabajadores adicionales justo ahora.<\/p>\n
\u201cLa escasez laboral es buena en el sentido de que todos tienen empleo, pero es mala porque significa que el pa\u00eds podr\u00eda estar creciendo m\u00e1s r\u00e1pidamente y es incapaz de hacerlo\u201d, se\u00f1ala Cavagnaro. \u201cLa econom\u00eda tiene una mano atada a la espalda\u201d.<\/p>\n
Gideon Long trabaja como periodista freelance en Santiago<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
A couple of years ago, around a quarter of the people who walked through Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez\u2019s office door in the Santiago suburb of Las Condes were unemployed. Most were well-qualified professionals with impressive CVs but they were struggling to find work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s changed,\u201d says Gonz\u00e1lez, general manager of mandomedio.com, a headhunting company. \u201cThese days everyone has a job. They come to us because they\u2019re looking for a better one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chile\u2019s unemployment rate has fallen dramatically in the past three years. In mid-2009, at the height of the global financial crisis, it was close to 12%, but in the three months to the end of April this year it had dropped to just 6.5%, according to data from the national statistics institute, the INE.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s difficult to make historical comparisons using INE unemployment data because the institute changed its methodology in 2010. But statistics from the University of Chile, which has measured the jobless rate in the Greater Santiago area using unchanged criteria since 1957, suggest how low the current rate really is.<\/p>\n
In December 2011, unemployment in the Santiago area (home to around a third of Chile\u2019s population) fell to 6.2%, figures from the university\u2019s Microdata Center show. That was its lowest level since March 1996.<\/p>\n
In a speech in New York in April, Finance Minister Felipe Larra\u00edn said the government had created 720,000 new jobs since coming to power, at a rate nearly four times faster than under the previous government. Around 400,000 of those jobs have gone to women. \u201cWe\u2019ve overseen the best period of job creation in our history,\u201d said Larra\u00edn. \u201cSome people say we\u2019re at full employment, and perhaps we\u2019re close to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unemployment is unlikely to stay so low and, indeed, there are already signs that it\u2019s rising in some areas, due in part to seasonal factors (it usually climbs during the Southern Hemisphere winter due to agricultural redundancies). In its most recent survey, the University of Chile said the jobless rate in Santiago jumped to 8% in March, up 1.8 percentage points from three months earlier.<\/p>\n
Even so, national unemployment is impressively low by historical standards, and David Bravo, an economics professor and director of the Microdata Center, says he expects it to average a lean 7% in 2012.<\/p>\n
As ever, though, the devil is in the detail.<\/p>\n
Firstly, there are big discrepancies between different sectors of the economy. Employment in the construction industry in Greater Santiago soared 14.8% year-on-year in March and 11.5% in industrial manufacturing. But during the same period, employment in the retail sector fell 10.5%.<\/p>\n
Secondly, there are important differences between the respective employment rates for men and women. More than 70% of the potential male workforce is employed while for women the rate is barely 50%.<\/p>\n
Thirdly, the headline figures mask a stubborn youth unemployment problem: 19.8% of the potential workforce aged between 20 and 24 is out of work compared to just 4.4% for those aged between 50 and 54.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/Andrea_Repetto_2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Job quality is also an issue. Critics of the government say many of the new jobs are temporary, insecure or poorly paid. Wages remain relatively low. More than half of Chilean workers earn less than US$460 a month, points out Andrea Repetto, an economics professor at Adolfo Iba\u00f1ez University.<\/p>\n
A race for talent<\/strong><\/p>\nFor private companies, the low jobless rate means, first and foremost, a scarcity of labor.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a significant deficit of workers in mining, agriculture, construction, transport and some industrial sectors, although not all,\u201d says Bruno Baranda, undersecretary for the Labor Ministry. \u201cIn the metalworking sector, for example, there\u2019s a shortage of electricians and welders.\u201d<\/p>\n
One initiative that\u2019s helped bring liquidity to the labor market is a government website, the National Employment Service (Bolsa Nacional de Empleo, www.bne.cl). Launched in 2011, it allows workers to upload their CVs and companies to advertise job vacancies. Some 200,000 CVs have been posted on the site and 300,000 jobs advertised.<\/p>\n
Yet still there is a labor shortage and in the construction industry it is particularly acute. Not only has the sector bounced back strongly from the global financial meltdown of 2008\/9, with projects like Santiago\u2019s emblematic Costanera Center back on track, it also received a shot in the arm from reconstruction following the earthquake of February 2010, which generated demand for everything from builders and carpenters to plasterers and welders. The sector expanded 8% last year, outstripping the wider economy by two percentage points. Up and down the country, construction companies are struggling to find the workers they need.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/BRUNO_BARANDA_2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a problem which has been growing over the past two years,\u201d says Carolin Carboni, human resources manager at Besalco, a construction company employing 9,300 people.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lack of quality too,\u201d she adds. \u201cThe people who are available don\u2019t have the necessary skills and training. The technical colleges have done their best to adapt their curricula to meet company needs, but there\u2019s still a gap.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sergio Cavagnaro, general manager of the Chilean Chamber of Construction (CChC), says his sector is \u201calready at full employment\u201d and describes the situation as \u201ccritical\u201d. The chamber is training women to take jobs that were once the preserve of men and even looking into the possibility of taking on prisoners on day-release schemes.<\/p>\n
The problem is by no means limited to construction firms. Retailers like Walmart are finding it tough to entice and keep staff \u2013 either unskilled workers to fill supermarket shelves or skilled professionals to run the company.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn periods of high unemployment, people come to us to look for work, but in times of full employment like now, it\u2019s the other way around,\u201d says Claudio Hohmann, manager of corporate affairs at Walmart Chile. \u201cNow, it\u2019s the company that has to go out and look for workers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hohmann says Walmart, which employs 40,000 people in Chile, has become more proactive. \u201cWe\u2019re going out to the universities and showcasing the company to young people, because attracting talent has become much more competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n
He says staff turnover has increased. Young people are now in an enviable position: they can leave a job after just a few months and walk straight into another one, often with better pay.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/CLAUDIO_HOHMANN_0.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Many companies complain of losing staff to the big mining companies in northern Chile. \u201cMining firms have the advantage that, at the margins at which they operate, they can offer more attractive wages,\u201d says Hohmann. \u201cRetailers operate at very tight margins so we can\u2019t always offer those kinds of salaries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, wages are rising. According to the INE, salaries in Chile have risen 6.6% in real terms since 2009 and the cost of labor has risen 9%. The Chilean Chamber of Construction says wages in its sector have risen by 20% since 2009, and by even more in the north, where the lure of the mines is strongest. In his May 21 address to the nation, President Sebasti\u00e1n Pi\u00f1era said wage inflation was running at 6% a year, a full 2.5% ahead of consumer price inflation. That\u2019s good news for workers, but not so good for payrolls.<\/p>\n
More workers please!<\/strong><\/p>\nSo, where can these private companies find more workers at a reasonable price?<\/p>\n
One obvious answer lies in the great potential of Chile\u2019s women. At around 50%, the country has one of the lowest rates of female participation in the workforce anywhere in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), although it has improved in recent years.<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven Chile\u2019s level of development, that rate should be at least 15 percentage points higher than it is,\u201d says Andrea Repetto. \u201cFrom that point of view, Chile isn\u2019t even close to full employment. There\u2019s still a lot of potential to bring more workers into the labor market.\u201d<\/p>\n
The government says it\u2019s trying to unleash that potential. Undersecretary Baranda points to the Women Miner (Mujer Minera<\/em>) program, launched in February this year, as one example. The program offers training to 2,000 women from the poorest sectors of society to help them find work in the mining industry.<\/p>\nBut there are still obstacles to the employment of women, not least Chile\u2019s extremely generous maternity leave provisions, which make some companies reluctant to hire women. Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez at mandomedio.com says he\u2019s noticed a fall in the number of women being hired since those provisions were strengthened last year.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/CCarboniBesalco_1_0.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Some women say they would be tempted to work if they had better access to childcare, could work flexible hours, if wages were higher or if public transport were better, allowing them to travel to work more easily and more cheaply. Until these various problems are addressed, the untapped potential of Chile\u2019s female workforce is likely to remain just that \u2013 untapped.<\/p>\n
Another potential source of labor lies outside Chile\u2019s borders. There are millions of unemployed Europeans and work-hungry Latin Americans who could potentially find jobs here. Gonz\u00e1lez, whose headhunting company has offices in Peru and Argentina as well as Chile, says Chilean firms are often reluctant to import labor from abroad, but that is changing, due to necessity. He says companies are starting to look to Spain, where the jobless rate is over 20%, for potential well-qualified professional recruits.<\/p>\n
But there is a limit to how many foreigners can work in Chile. At present, any company with 25 or more employees on its books has to ensure that at least 85% of its workforce is Chilean.<\/p>\n
The CChC\u2019s Cavagnaro says many construction companies would like to take on more Peruvian, Bolivian and Colombian migrants but they can\u2019t, for fear of breaking the law. \u201cWe\u2019re talking to the Labor Ministry about modifying that rule,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not just foreigners who are being lured to Chile by the prospect of work. Chileans are too. As the economic situation in Europe remains dire, many Chileans there are returning to their homeland. \u201cI\u2019m getting a lot of calls and CVs from Chileans in Europe who feel it\u2019s maybe time to come home,\u201d says Gonz\u00e1lez.<\/p>\n
Stuck in the Stone Age<\/strong><\/p>\nThe other great source of untapped potential labor in Chile is its youth. There are far too many young Chileans stuck at home, without work, reliant on their parents for financial support.<\/p>\n
Here, training is key, and Chile\u2019s record in this area is lamentable. Labor Minister Evelyn Matthei recently acknowledged that when it comes to employee training, Chile is \u201cin the Stone Age\u201d.<\/p>\n
The National Service of Training and Employment (SENCE) is the state entity charged with overseeing training. It offers a range of subsidies, grants and bonuses to employers and employees to incentivize training, with a particular emphasis on women, the young and the poor.<\/p>\n
The central pillar of the SENCE\u2019s work is a scheme under which companies can apply for a tax credit in exchange for providing their workers with training. The companies decide who is trained and how.<\/p>\n
But there is a growing consensus that the system is failing. Last November, a commission of experts headed by the economist Osvaldo Larra\u00f1aga published a damning report on training in Chile, describing it as \u201cclearly deficient\u201d and \u201cregressive\u201d. Some 27% of funds for training were going to the richest 20% of the workforce, it found.<\/p>\n
The problem is that, all too often, the money goes to large companies with employees who are already relatively well trained. It doesn\u2019t find its way to small companies where it\u2019s most needed.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, because the companies choose the content of the courses, they tend to focus on non-transferable skills that are specific to their own needs. They don\u2019t necessarily give workers skills that will benefit them in later life.<\/p>\n
Finally, the courses tend to be too short \u2013 19 hours on average in 2010. That\u2019s not much time to teach anyone anything.<\/p>\n
Larra\u00f1aga\u2019s commission found that SENCE\u2019s tax credits were worth US$226 million in 2010, accounting for 80% of total public spending on training. The benefits to companies were clear, but the benefits to workers far less so.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe commission found that around two-thirds of public spending on training was channeled into initiatives that had no impact whatsoever,\u201d says Bravo, who was a member of the commission.![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/DAVID_BRAVO_2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
The panel of experts praised some SENCE programs, particularly those financed through the National Training Fund (FONCAP), targeting young, poor people. But it said their impact was minimal. In 2009, for example, there were 441,000 people aged between 18 and 25 who were unemployed and who belonged to the poorest 40% of Chilean households. Of these, only 12,000, less than 3%, received FONCAP-funded training.<\/p>\n
To her credit, Minister Matthei has taken the commission\u2019s recommendations to heart and promised to send a bill to Congress to overhaul employee training in Chile.<\/p>\n
Francisco Ag\u00fcero, a former national director of SENCE and now the head of its companies\u2019 department, says no decision has yet been taken on whether to phase out the system of tax credits, as the commission recommended. \u201cIt\u2019s being debated and analyzed,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
But whether it\u2019s scrapped or not, the emphasis is clearly moving away from tax credits towards other SENCE programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe minister is particularly interested in a new program called Training For Work (Formaci\u00f3n para el Trabajo<\/em> or FOTRAB), that offers much longer training courses, of between 500 and 600 hours, and targets young people from the poorest quintiles,\u201d says Ag\u00fcero.<\/p>\nTraining of that duration requires money, but the government seems committed to finding it. At US$57 million, FOTRAB\u2019s budget for this year is 162% higher than last year, and other SENCE programs are also being handsomely financed.<\/p>\n
While that remains the case there is hope that the Chilean workers of the future will be better equipped to do their jobs, but that won\u2019t solve the short-term problem of how to find extra workers right now.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe labor shortage is good in the sense that everyone has jobs, but it\u2019s bad because it means the country could be growing more quickly, and it\u2019s unable to do so,\u201d says Cavagnaro. \u201cThe economy has one hand tied behind its back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gideon Long is a freelance journalist based in Santiago<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
Hace un par de a\u00f1os, cerca de un cuarto de las personas que cruzaban la puerta de la oficina de Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez, en la comuna de Las Condes en Santiago, estaban desempleados. La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.<\/p>\n
\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. Vienen porque est\u00e1n buscando uno mejor\u201d.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Hace un par de a\u00f1os, cerca de un cuarto de las personas que cruzaban la puerta de la oficina de Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez, en la comuna de Las Condes en Santiago, estaban desempleados. La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.<\/p>\n
\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. Vienen porque est\u00e1n buscando uno mejor\u201d.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","news_tax":[],"user_type":[],"class_list":["post-4807","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Escasez Laboral en Chile: Se Buscan TrabajadoresChile\u2019s Labor Shortage: Workers Needed - AmCham Chile<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/amchamchile.cl\/noticia\/escasez-laboral-en-chile-se-buscan-trabajadores\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Escasez Laboral en Chile: Se Buscan TrabajadoresChile\u2019s Labor Shortage: Workers Needed - AmCham Chile\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hace un par de a\u00f1os, cerca de un cuarto de las personas que cruzaban la puerta de la oficina de Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez, en la comuna de Las Condes en Santiago, estaban desempleados. La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. Vienen porque est\u00e1n buscando uno mejor\u201d.Hace un par de a\u00f1os, cerca de un cuarto de las personas que cruzaban la puerta de la oficina de Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez, en la comuna de Las Condes en Santiago, estaban desempleados. La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. 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La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. Vienen porque est\u00e1n buscando uno mejor\u201d.Hace un par de a\u00f1os, cerca de un cuarto de las personas que cruzaban la puerta de la oficina de Ignacio Gonz\u00e1lez, en la comuna de Las Condes en Santiago, estaban desempleados. La mayor\u00eda eran profesionales bien calificados con impresionantes CV, pero ten\u00edan dificultades para encontrar trabajo.\u201cEso ha cambiado\u201d, se\u00f1ala Gonz\u00e1lez, gerente general de mandomedio.com, firma de headhunting. \u201cHoy en d\u00eda, todos el mundo tiene empleo. 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![\"\"](\"\/sites\/default\/files\/Andrea_Repetto_1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n