Cuba / State payroll cut as number of private-sector jobs rises

Cuba’s drive to slash state payrolls and spur private-sector growth picked up surprising steam in 2012 as President Raul Castro moved ahead with reforms to the Soviet-style economy, according to figures unveiled recently with little hoopla.

The number of private or “non state” workers rose 23 per cent in 2012, while state sector employment dropped 5.7 per cent, according to a report from Economy Minister Adel Yzquierdo Rodriguez. The unemployment rate grew to a record 3.8 per cent, not including Cubans who did not seek work.

Choosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor from

via Cuba cuts state payroll as private-sector jobs double – The Globe and Mail.