Embedded Files
I am an Associate Professor at the Institute for Economic Policies, Universidad Andres Bello (Santiago, Chile).
My current research interests are Macroeconomics, Labor Economics, and Political Economy.
Here you can find my C.V.
I am also co-director of the SABE project (Sistema de Análisis de Bolsas de Empleo), which gathers and harmonizes real-time data from job ads and applicants from multiple online job boards in Chile and classifies demand and supply side into occupations using machine learning techniques.
These are profiles in: Google Scholar, RePeC, SSRN, Research Gate, ORCID, Scopus.
Contact: benjamin.villena.r (at) gmail.com
News
News
July 13, 2026: El Mercurio portrays my perspectives on employment in upcoming months in Chile.
July 10, 2026: Interview with Radio Dulce (V Región) about the recommendations of the Labor Reactivation Committee.
July 7, 2026: I posted a LinkedIn article explaining the required reforms in the National Training System Agency (SENCE) in line with the Labor Reactivation Committee (Mesa de Reactivación Laboral) appointed by the Ministry of Labor Affairs in Chile.
July 4, 2026: I wrote a column for Ex-Ante about the reform suggested by the Labor Reactivation Committee about expanding the time window to compute legal hours in Chile.
July 3, 2026: I posted a LinkedIn article on the proposed use of employment subsidies in Chile to deal with the crisis in the labor market in line with the Labor Reactivation Committee (Mesa de Reactivación Laboral) appointed by the Ministry of Labor Affairs in Chile.
July 2, 2026: My comments on the government's announcements of job creation subsidies in La Tercera.
July 2, 2026: Diario Financiero asked me about the situation of unemployment of young and college-educated workers in the context of the labor market crisis in Chile.
July 2, 2026: Interview on Radio Agricultura and Radio Sonar on the potential recession, employment perspectives, and recommendations by Labor Reactivation Committee.
July 1, 2026: A LinkedIn post on the proposals to children's daycare coverage to spur the female labor market in Chile in line with the Labor Reactivation Committee (Mesa de Reactivación Laboral).
July 1, 2026: Interviews in several radio stations to talk about recommendations of the Labor Reactivation Committee (Mesa de Reactivación Laboral) (Radio Futuro, Radio USACH, Radio Infinita, Radio Agricultura)
June 30, 2026: Emol covered the final submission of the 22 recommendations by the Labor Reactivation Committee (Mesa de Reactivación Laboral) to the Minister of Labor Affairs. Honored to be part of this group.
June 25, 2026: My views on several potential reforms for boosting the labor market (universal childcare, hourly-wage contracts, and employment tax credit) in El Mercurio.
June 24: I was one of the speakers at the forum organized by La Tercera on the "Reconstruction Law" supported by the Chilean government, a package consisting of a corporate tax cut, a tax credit for employment, and several other issues. My participation is portrayed here.
June 23, 2026: El Mercurio asks for my opinion on the possible implications of hourly contracts in the Chilean labor market.
June 23, 2026: Interviewed on "From the Newsroom" (Desde la Redacción) in La Tercera about the impact of the Reconstruction Law promoted by the government.
June 22, 2026: Briefly interviewed on Radio Cooperativa about my views on the "employment winter plan" to create 50,000 new jobs.
June 21, 2026: My opinions on some new potential reforms to the labor market on legal hours worked averaging, hourly wage, and multi-occupation contracts in La Tercera.
June 4, 2026: Interviewed in La Tercera/Radio Duna alongside David Bravo to discuss Chile's labor emergency and the urgent need for private investment to restore formal employment. Read on La Tercera.
June 3, 2026: Joined Radio Agricultura to discuss long-term unemployment scarring effects, hidden underemployment statistics, and regulatory barriers slowing down female labor formalization. Watch on YouTube.
May 31, 2026: Interviewed on TVN regarding Chile's rising 9.1% unemployment rate, highlighting gender gaps, structural challenges, and labor informality. Watch on YouTube.
May 31, 2026: Published a column in Ex-Ante addressing labor market reactivation challenges and strategic training policies within the Ministry of Labor's technical committee framework. Read on Ex-Ante.
May 30, 2026: Published an op-ed in La Segunda analyzing the Ministry of Finance's proposal to eliminate the SENCE tax credit for labor training, suggesting a co-payment alternative instead.
May 8, 2026: Appointed by the Minister of Labor to join the newly formed Labor Reactivation Committee to design urgent policies tackling unemployment and informality. Read Official Announcement.
May 7, 2026: Honored to be the main speaker at the Trabajando.com corporate event, debating labor market adaptability, productivity, minimum wage gaps, and AI impacts alongside the Undersecretary of Labor and other. LinkedIn.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse