New record number of employed people in Catalonia in July despite the rise in unemployment

BarcelonaIt is already usual for the month of July to arrive to break the trend of declining unemployment. Although Catalonia maintains record employment, according to data published this Monday by the Ministry of Labor, the total number of unemployed people in the Principality increased by 4,339, reaching 319,423. In absolute terms, Catalonia was the autonomous community where unemployment grew the most, followed by the Basque Country (+1,600) and Aragon (+1,167). If we compare it with July 2024, however, the number of unemployed Catalans fell by 7,860, a 2.4% decrease.

In any case, the labor market remains at historic highs in Catalonia. After June the threshold of 3.9 million workers was exceeded for the first timeLast month, this milestone was repeated. According to data published by the Ministry of Social Security, 6,887 new employees were added to the list, bringing the total to 3,912,345 people working in our country. In the last year alone, 76,269 were added, an increase of 1.99%. Even so, Catalonia was not the region that created the most jobs in absolute terms. The ranking was led by the Balearic Islands (+12,579), followed by Galicia (+10,835) and the Valencian Community (+6,968).

But why is unemployment rising if the labor market continues to grow? This increase in unemployment in Catalonia was concentrated in the services sector, which left 3,239 more unemployed than in June. The number of previously unemployed people who registered with job-finding services also increased by 926. On the other hand, the increase in industry was smaller, with 206 new unemployed, while in construction the figure decreased slightly and in agriculture it remained stable. Looking at unemployment benefits, it is clear that the sector that dragged down job creation was the education and leisure sector, especially in Barcelona. In addition, the hospitality industry also performed worse in this region, which as a whole lost 14,992 jobs. In contrast, in Girona, the tourism industry offset the deficit, with this indicator growing by 3.2%, adding 12,436 new workers.

The Secretary of Labor of the Generalitat (Catalan Government), Paco Ramos, noted in a press conference that this is now the fourth month of record job creation in Catalonia and that the unemployment rate is the lowest for a month of July since 2007. He also highlighted that the temporary employment rate fell to 11.2%. "We were coming from a high of 25%," Ramos noted. Of the 268,521 contracts signed in the Principality in July (a 13% increase compared to June), 42% were permanent, and the remaining 58% had an expiration date. "Temporary contracts grew twice as fast as permanent contracts," the senior official admitted.

The government continues working on the implementation of its shock plan against long-term unemployment—this group represents 50% of the unemployed—and has identified a "certain ageism" in this problem, as well as a link to the low educational level of these individuals. "Among those registered over 45, there are probably also some of these people with factors other than strictly work-related issues, such as health problems," Ramos assessed. On the other hand, the number of unemployed people under 25 fell by 1,521 in July, but these young people accounted for 18% of the new jobless population for the entire month.

Improving employment in the State

Across Spain, Social Security registrations grew slightly, with 4,408 new jobs. The ministry emphasized in a statement that this performance improves on that of the previous three Julys. With this increase, the total number of registered workers in the state now stands at 21,865,503. In the last twelve months, 482,397 workers have entered the labor market, an increase of 2.26%. Regarding unemployment, the number of people registered with job-seeking services fell by 1,357 in Spain, a modest decline of 0.06% in a month still marked by hiring in the tourism industry. Thus, there are still 2,404,606 citizens seeking employment in the state, 145,631 fewer than a year ago.

In an interview with RNE (Spanish National Radio), Spain's Second Vice President and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, stated that these are "historic" figures in Spain and that they continue "a common trend" of recent times. According to Díaz, the slower rate of unemployment reduction is explained by the fact that summer hiring has been anticipated since the pandemic, and she emphasized that the current unemployment rate is "the lowest in ten years." However, she asserted that she "is not satisfied" and will continue working to reduce this indicator. "Four out of ten jobs in the European Union are created in Spain, and right now they are quality jobs, as wages have grown by 3.8%, that is, one point above inflation," the Minister of Labor argued.