Workers left in the lurch: thoughts on the shipbuilding labor market in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area

Abstract This papers aims to analyze the importance of the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro in the Brazilian shipbuilding labor market, especially the cities of Rio de Janeiro, Niterói and São Gonçalo. It highlights the regional decentralization of the shipbuilding industry and the evolution of employment in different stages of its history, and focus on the recent period in which a new crisis has probably been triggered. In addition, the article characterizes the labor market and describes the probable new crisis that has been affecting this industry since 2014. The Brazilian shipbuilding production has always been concentrated in the Southeast, especially in the state of Rio de Janeiro, which has historically housed the main shipyards and the main output and employment indicators.