Costa Rican government to increase hiring in 2013

Although President Laura Chinchilla asked her Cabinet not to create new positions, the budget for 2013 includes the creation of 3,189 new jobs.

That number doubles hiring in 2012, when 1,573 new positions were approved, and is even bigger than the 2011 budget, when the central government hired 513 new employees.

The data was revealed Tuesday in a technical report on the 2013 national budget, issued by the Comptroller General, which indicates that salary costs will increase by 10 percent if the budget bill is approved.

The Comptroller General’s office also warned that wages for public employees would grow above inflation rates, and that the amount estimated for the payment of extra-salary incentives is higher than that stipulated for base salaries. “The approval of this budget bill would mean a financial deficit of 5.3 percent of the [gross domestic product] by 2013,” the report stated.

The 2013 national budget must be approved by the Legislative Assembly before Nov. 30.