Despite the slight rise in unemployment in the third quarter, the number of people in work grew to 20.5 million, a record since 2008
The summer has not been as good for the Spanish labor market as it usually has been in the third quarter, one of the most dynamic stages of the year. Between July and September, the number of unemployed rose slightly by 60,800 people, pushing the unemployment rate to 12.67%, compared to 12.4% in the previous quarter, according to data published by the INE. If we exclude the two years of the pandemic (2020 and 2021), it is the first time in almost ten years that the number of unemployed has risen in a third quarter.
The destruction of jobs was the reality of this third quarter, largely determined by high inflation (the CPI reached its peak in almost four decades, almost 11%), as well as by the weak expectations among businessmen after a good second quarter, that of the spring, which was not so affected by the war in Ukraine. Even the good state that tourism has experienced this summer has not prevented job losses.
In any case, if we compare the data with last year’s data, Spain has managed to reduce the number of unemployed by 436,500 people, and by almost two percentage points the unemployment rate, which measures the number of unemployed above the active population.
The difference in regional data does not reflect a clear decline in unemployment in the most touristic areas. For example, the communities with the largest declines per quarter are the Balearic Islands (with 22,500 fewer unemployed) or Castilla y León (14,400 fewer), compared to the increase in the number of unemployed in Madrid (by more than 38,000) or the Valencian Community (23,300) . In the past year, the communities with the biggest drop in unemployment were the tourist communities, such as Andalusia, the Canary Islands or Catalonia.
In addition, unemployment rose this quarter in the services sector, closely linked to tourism, with 85,700 more unemployed, followed by agriculture (14,400) due to conditions such as drought, and in industry (6,400) largely due to high energy costs and shutdowns. the factories in many cases during the last few weeks. The only sector that has managed to reduce the number of unemployed is construction, with almost 15,000 fewer.
In the third quarter, the number of employees increased by 77,700 compared to the previous quarter, bringing the total number of employees in Spain to more than 20.5 million people. Without taking into account the two-year pandemic, employment has grown to more than in the summer of 2019. On this occasion, growth was especially in the public sector, which has again exerted a labor engine, an increase in employment of 52,300. employees compared to 25,400 in private companies. In the past year, the administrations have created 22,100 jobs, compared to more than half a million in the private sector, as a result of easing the pandemic crisis.
Employment rose this quarter in the service sector (additional 114,300 people) and in manufacturing (33,100). On the contrary, it fell in Agriculture (down 60,300) and Construction (9,400 down).
In the Ministry of Economy, they clarify that the quarter was marked “by the deterioration of the external environment”, although Spain nevertheless “continued to create employment” with more than 20.5 million employees, the highest figure since 2008 and almost the historical 2007 record.
He also attributes it to the sharp increase in the active population, reaching a historic maximum of 23.5 million, “reflecting workers’ confidence in finding a job.” INE records indicate that the number of assets increased by 138,500 this quarter. The activity rate increased by 15 hundredths to 58.86%. And in the past year, the active population has increased by 78,200 people.
In addition, the positive effects of the labor reform have made it possible to lower the temporary rate to 20.18%, the historical minimum, according to Economy. The number of wage earners with a permanent contract has increased by 1.3 million people in the past year, of which more than 444,000 in the last quarter.
The good performance of the labor market has made it possible to improve the situation of households and to bring the number of households with all their members unemployed to less than one million and the number of households with all their members in employment by almost 500,000 in the past year. to increase
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
