The Ministry of Labor (Mentrab) has awarded 336 scholarships of the 630 in force of the Mi First Job program. These scholarships are available until August, so young people can still join the program. The information was confirmed by Nineth Peneleu, Vice Minister of Labor and Social Welfare.
My first job is an initiative that seeks the incorporation of young Guatemalans to the workplace. The scholarships are granted to people aged 18 to 24 and have a duration of four months, during which Mentrab subsidizes 51% of the young man’s salary, while 49% are paid by employers. It is a public-private alliance, Peneleu explained.
According to the official, the delivery of the scholarships began in the first four -month period of 2025, and the incorporation of new young people until the month of August will be sought, in order to close the program in December.
For Gustavo Mendoza, coordinator of the Contact Center & BPO sector at the Guatemalan Association of Exporters (AGEXPORT), to achieve all beneficiaries, the hiring windows that usually occur during the year should be used. Among these he mentioned Holy Week and October, moments when many young people stop studying and begin to look for a job.
While from the Communication Department of the Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations (CACIF) it was highlighted that the issue is not on the agenda of any of the commissions currently.
The same private sector estimated last October that every year 240 thousand people come out in search of formal job. However, on average they are barely registered 75 thousand jobs per year. To achieve a difference, it is required that half of the people seeking formal employment achieve their mission, indicated at that time the president of the Cacif. From this point of view, there is a gap between the number of scholarships granted and the labor demand for formal employment.
Peneleu said it will seek to increase the amount of scholarships to a thousand, for which a projection of Q3.5 million has been made. For this purpose, the Vice Minister said that internal changes and administrative efforts are being made to formalize the announcement of the increase.
What sectors are the scholarships?
Peneleu said that many of the young people incorporated into the program are admitted to companies that operate Under services outsourcing schemes.
Among the sectors mentioned by the Vice Minister is the BPO, due to the knowledge in languages possessed by the beneficiaries. In addition, he added that the business sector has shown interest in young people: this sector has consulted the ability of this program to generate more investment to the country.
According to the Mentrab, the sectors in which the scholars are located are construction, food and drinks, banking and corporate, non -governmental foundations, agriculture, services of outsourcinghospital network and hotel.
Regarding the BPO area, Mendoza reported that the mastery of English continues to be a weakness among the applicants, who can only opt for 15% of the available places, since these are those that require mastery of the Spanish language.
Changes and good practices
According to Peneleu, 50% of young people incorporated into the program remain permanently in companies. That is why it is so important to continue promoting this type of initiatives, because they really generate learning spaces for work, the official mentioned.
The Vice Minister said that business meetings are being carried out to continue with the development of the program, with the commitment of the private sector. According to Peneleu, during this year the opening of more work spaces for young people will be sought, and more companies are expected to be willing to provide opportunities.
Mendoza said that, for the private sector, the program helps reduce business risk. However, he argued that an extension of the program database is necessary: I understand that most of the database work are not specialized.
In addition, he recalled that the subsidy granted by the Mentrab is based on the minimum wage, which can limit the expansion towards more specialized places. This, according to Mendoza, with the aim of offering other types of places to workers looking for an opportunity in this type of sectors.
Possibility of increasing scholarships
Peneleu indicated that, traditionally, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare has 600 annual scholarships. However, the Vice Minister said they will seek to expand the budget to assign more resources and get scholarships to amount to a thousand.
For this increase, Peneleu explained that internal modifications are being carried out. We already identify all the probabilities and conditions to increase our number of scholarships, said the official.
He also reported that these additional scholarships will be granted until August, with the purpose of executing the specific budget and ensuring that the latest participants can meet the four months contemplated by the program.
Mendoza considered that this increase could be positive. However, he added that it would be beneficial for young people that the program was accompanied by training processes. I think it would be very useful to show those little gaps that can occur in young people interested in participating, but that they need a step to opt for these places, said Mendoza, who added that, among the training that should be granted, in addition to English courses, are soft skills, such as negotiation, sales, public speaking and customer service.
How to apply?
Those interested should follow the following steps to apply for the my first job:
- Enter to Official website of the program.
- Select the user option, enabled to apply to the scholarship.
- Search for the “your job” and click “Go to Site”.
- Choose the option “My first job”.
- Follow the instructions to register and complete the application process.
According to the official portal “your job”, they can apply all Guatemalan young people between 18 and 24 years old who have not had formal work experience.