MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Walmart is Latin America’s single largest employer, says Latin Business

Half of Walmart Latam staff is employed in Mexico

The single largest employer in Latin America is US-based retailer Walmart, according to the first annual ranking of Latin America’s Top 60 Employers from Latin Business Chronicle.

The company employs a whopping 326,136 people in Latin America. Nearly half of those work in Mexico alone, where Walmart de Mexico, is the country’s top employer, with 176,463 people.

That compares with 145,146 employed at Pemex, the state oil company which ranks as the third-largest employer in Latin America.

Oil giants Petrobras of Brazil and Pemex of Mexico rank as Latin America’s largest companies in revenues on the Latin 500 list.

Femsa, Mexico in the beverage industry figures in fourth place with 127.129 employed and Grupo Bimbo, food industry ranks sixth.

Mexico dominates the list of largest employers with 23 companies followed by Brazil with 18. Of the top five, four operate in Mexico.

Pemex with 145,146 employees has double the number working for Brazil’s Petrobras, which nevertheless enjoys greater sales and profits than its Mexican counterpart according to Latin Business Chronicle listing.

BR Foods is the largest employer in Brazil with 114,059 staff followed by Itau Unibanco with 101,640 employees.

The Spanish corporations Banco Santander, BBVA and Telefónica also outstand. Santander employs 85,974 in Latin America and is ranked ten in the list.

Chile has a retail company among the top employers, Cencosud (7) with 102.162, and Argentina’s Arcos Dorados, food industry figures in position 9 with 100.000 employed.