La regulación laboral le ofrece a los trabajadores protección que, sin embargo, genera con frecuencia costos a los empleadores. Hay evidencia de que estos costos pueden generar informalidad y desempleo, pues dificultan la contratación de empleados asalariados y la formalización de empleados independientes.
During the 20th century, women in Colombia achieved an important milestone by significantly increasing their participation in the labor market, especially in the second half of the century. As can be seen in Graph 1, female labor participation (the fraction of working-age women working or looking for work) increased from 18% in 1951 to 26% in 1978, then to 47% in 1992, to 55% in 2000, and finally to 60% in 2018, while male participation remained relatively stable at around 75%.
Between mid-2014 and late 2015, the Colombian peso experienced a depreciation that took the price of the US dollar from COP 1,900 to COP 3,000. The pass-through of such exchange rate shocks to prices in the economy is a crucial issue for the monetary authority, as it reflects the sensitivity of domestic prices to exchange-rate fluctuations. The pass-through mechanisms at the microeconomic level involve adjustments in the behavior of firms and consumers in each specific market.
This year, coinciding with the celebration of its 100th anniversary, Banco de la República (the Central Bank of Colombia) received the ‘Carbon Neutral’ certification from Bureau Veritas. This recognition indicates that the Bank has taken the necessary measures to mitigate and offset its CO2 emissions, reducing its carbon footprint in the different processes involved in its operation as a central bank, including the complex industrial processes associated with the production and distribution of banknotes and coins used by all Colombian citizens.
Among the sources of external financing of the Colombian economy, in addition to foreign direct investment (FDI), the country also receives other significant resources known as portfolio flows. These flows are a major source of financing for the Government and for private companies. Portfolio investments are made mainly in public debt instruments (bonds issued by the Colombian government and managed by Banco de la República, TES) and, to a lesser extent, in company stocks and corporate bonds.
The health crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic compelled the implementation of measures to curb the spread of the disease. These measures, in turn, impacted both companies' decisions regarding staffing and workers' choices in the labor market. The uncertainty surrounding the duration of the pandemic and its effect on labor productivity, combined with these circumstances, could have created incentives to expedite the automation of jobs—essentially, the replacement of employment with various forms of capital.
In 2015, Colombia signed the Paris Agreement, thus committing to reduce the exploration, exploitation, and consumption of fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and oil. A consequence of this agreement is the risk of turning fossil fuel-related assets into stranded assets, whose value would decrease as they cease to be operational. This risk has financial implications for firms in the sector, which are also macroeconomically relevant given their importance in the Colombian economy.
Payroll taxes are a key tool for financing public goods and benefits for workers. However, they may also increase labor costs for formal employers, discouraging formal job creation and shifting labor to the informal sector. The magnitude of these negative effects is uncertain and depends on several factors.
En 2015 el estado colombiano firmó el Acuerdo de París que establece compromisos para reducir la exploración, explotación y consumo de combustibles fósiles, como carbón, gas natural y petróleo. Una consecuencia del acuerdo es el riesgo de convertir los activos relacionados con la explotación de combustibles fósiles en activos varados, cuyo valor decrecería a medida que dejen de ser operativos. Este riesgo tiene implicaciones financieras para las firmas del sector que además tienen relevancia macroeconómica, dada su importancia para la economía del país.
Los impuestos sobre la nómina son una herramienta clave para financiar bienes públicos y beneficios para los trabajadores. Por otro lado, también aumentan los costos laborales a los empleadores formales, lo cual desalienta la creación de empleo formal y desplaza la mano de obra hacia el sector informal. La magnitud de estos efectos negativos es incierta y depende de varios factores.
