Unemployment falls to its lowest level in 17 years in March

BarcelonaThe labor market continues to improve its data, both in Catalonia and in Spain. The Principality led job creation during March in absolute terms, according to data published this Wednesday by the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Social Security.

The number of registered workers in Catalonia continued to rise, adding 30,196 people in March, an increase of 0.8%. This means that this month there were an average of 3,806,813 workers, a figure that once again approaches the absolute employment records registered during the summer of 2024. It is the best record ever achieved in a month of March. "This is a figure that we don't usually have until the summer months, at best, given that Easter is in April," celebrated the Secretary of Labor of the Generalitat, Paco Ramos, during the assessment of the statistics. In the last year, Catalonia has added 75,732 registered workers to Social Security, an increase of 2.03%.

As for registered unemployment, it fell by 2,556 people compared to February, and the total number of unemployed in Catalonia stands at 331,765, the lowest figure for a March in the last 17 years (since 2008). Ramos emphasized that the 0.8% reduction is greater than that recorded in the previous two years. In the last twelve months, registered unemployment has fallen by 12,624 people, a drop of 3.67%. The Secretary of Labor also boasted of having the lowest levels of youth unemployment in historical records and the reduction in long-term unemployment, which fell by 240 people compared to the previous month.

Furthermore, unemployment fell in March in all four Catalan regions, but in percentage terms this improvement was most noticeable in Girona (-1.68%), followed by Tarragona (-0.84%), Lleida (-0.78%), and Barcelona (-0.64%). Unemployment fell in all autonomous communities except Madrid, where it increased by 2,075 people, and in La Rioja, where it grew by 15. Catalonia was the region where this indicator fell the most in absolute terms, behind the Valencian Community (-4,905 unemployed).

Regarding the impact of the tariffs that the Donald Trump administration will implement this Wednesday, Ramos said that the Generalitat is not in a position to quantify what the impact will be in terms of jobs. "It depends on the dependence, the volume of exports to the US market, and the effects of substitution by customers from other markets," the senior Catalan government official noted. He also noted that the Catalan government traveled to China last week to attract investment and increase exports to mitigate the potential impact of the new US tariffs.

Labor market developments

Across the country, registered unemployment fell by 13,311 people in March, a 0.51% drop, bringing the total number of unemployed to 2,580,138. The Ministry of Labor also emphasized that this is the lowest figure for a March in the last 17 years, since 2008, when the Great Recession began. In the last twelve months, this number fell by 146,865 people, a decrease of 5.39%.

Looking at registered Social Security affiliation in Spain, the country created 161,492 new jobs, a 0.76% increase compared to the February figure. Thus, there are now 21,357,646 employed people on average in the country, some 450,000 more than a year ago. This boost is mainly explained by hiring in the hospitality sector, just before Easter, which this year falls in April: these businesses added 61,477 new members in March.

The Vice President of the Spanish Government and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, has assured that it is "absolutely" possible that the Spanish labor market will reach 22 million members this year. "We are moving towards a Spain with 22 million employees. When Mariano Rajoy governed, we had an average employment rate of 18.5 million. Rajoy dreamed of a Spain with 20 million employees, and I always say that this Spain has been achieved by the progressive coalition government, together with social dialogue."