Summary indicators of Employment protection Legislation (EPL) in Latin America and the Caribbean: 2013

By Social Protection and Labor Markets Division (VPS/SCL/SPL)

The OECD/IDB indicators of Employment Protection Legislation (EPL) measure the procedures and costs involved in dismissing individual or groups of workers and in hiring workers on fixed-term or temporary work agency contracts across Latin America and the Caribbean (data year 2013). The indicators were compiled from a reading of statutory laws, collective bargaining agreements, and case law, with the OECD Secretariat and the IDB equally sharing responsibility for interpreting each country's legal framework. This database constitutes the first systematic effort to review and compare employment protection regulations in LAC in a way that is also comparable with countries around the world.

Coverage

The dataset covers countries across the region, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay, among others. It is provided as a single CSV resource of summary indicators.

Uses

Researchers, policymakers, and labor-market analysts can use these indicators to compare the regulatory cost of hiring and dismissal across LAC economies and to benchmark the region against international standards. The indicators describe legal procedures and costs; they do not measure actual enforcement or labor-market outcomes.

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Metadata & use

Identifier https://doi.org/10.60966/7ux8upud
License Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivs 3.0 IGO
Citation

Inter-American Development Bank, et al. (2015). Summary indicators of Employment protection Legislation (EPL) in Latin America and the Caribbean: 2013. IDB Open Data. https://doi.org/10.60966/7ux8upud

Published date 2015-11-13
Modified date 2026-06-25
Tags/Keywords Caribbean · Employment · Jobs · Latin America · Layoffs · Temporary Work
Language
  1. English
Temporal coverage 2013-2013
Country
Argentina
Bahamas
Barbados
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Uruguay
Venezuela
Region Latin America and the Caribbean
Publisher
Inter-American Development Bank
Author
Inter-American Development Bank
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Data collection type Administrative Data
Statistical type Cross-sectional Data
Data structure Structured Data
Data notes

What does this dataset measure?

It provides summary indicators of Employment Protection Legislation (EPL): the procedures and costs involved in dismissing individual or groups of workers and in hiring workers on fixed-term or temporary work agency contracts.

Who produced these indicators?

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) produced them, equally sharing responsibility for interpreting each country's statutory laws, collective bargaining agreements, and case law.

What year do the indicators refer to?

The indicators refer to 2013.

Which countries are covered?

Countries across Latin America and the Caribbean are covered, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay, among others.

What sources were used to build the indicators?

They were compiled from the IDB's and OECD's own reading of statutory laws, collective bargaining agreements, and case law.

Why is this database significant?

It constitutes the first systematic approach to review and compare employment protection regulations in LAC in a way that is also comparable with countries around the world.

Does the dataset measure how laws are enforced in practice?

No. The indicators describe the procedures and costs set out in the legal framework; they do not directly measure enforcement or labor-market outcomes.

What format is the data available in?

The data is provided as a single CSV resource of summary indicators.

Under what license can I use this dataset?

It is published under the Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivs 3.0 IGO license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/igo/).

How do I cite this dataset?

Inter-American Development Bank, et al. (2015). Summary indicators of Employment protection Legislation (EPL) in Latin America and the Caribbean: 2013. IDB Open Data. https://doi.org/10.60966/7ux8upud

Dataset files

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