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4,000 new jobs expected this year

Rendering of the planner brewery in Yucatán. Source: Grupo Modelo
Rendering of the planner brewery in Yucatán. Source: Grupo Modelo

As several new commercial projects plod along toward completion, the state is counting how many jobs the new stores and factories will provide.

State Labor Secretary Martín Enrique Castillo Ruz estimates that this year at least 4,000 new jobs will be generated by pending commercial projects in Altabrisa and at Uptown, as well as Urban Center plaza in front of Boxito Kalia in Monterreal.

In addition, the new Yucatecan Brewery —which in January broke ground with great fanfare — is already hiring its first 500 employees; its related beer can factory has openings for up to 200 workers. The Leoni auto accessories plant is also under way, with jobs expected to be posted soon.

Urban Center construction is under way in the north. Photo: Twitter
Urban Center construction is under way in the north. Photo: Twitter

Uptown Mérida will include a big box store, movie complex and hotel. A Walmart and Starbucks are reportedly signed, but a hotel deal has yet to be announced.

No specific retailers were announced for the Urban Center plaza, although a rendering on their @ucmerida Twitter feed, which ignited last month, indicates a Chedraui supermarket, OfficeMax and an office building with the emblem of Actinver financial advisors. About 39 shops, a restaurant area with terraces and a playground is also promised.

The state has the lowest unemployment rate in the nation — 2 percent — said Castillo Ruz. At the beginning of the current state administration, the unemployment rate was 4.3, and then rose slightly 4.5. By last year, the jobless rate was at 2.4 and now it is at 2 percentage points. The national average is 3.9 percent.

As workers compete for jobs, Castillo Ruz predicted that salaries will climb in a state where average wages have been lowest in the nation.

Sources: Press releases

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