The number of unemployed (people without work and available for work) increased by 47,200 in the first quarter. This significant figure has raised some alarm and prompted a search in historical data for other poor first quarters. The year 2012 has appeared, when unemployment rose by 61,500. But the contextual situation is not comparable, because that year closed with a staggering figure of over 26% unemployment, while now in Catalonia we are below 9%.
It is important to note that this 9% does not reflect all economically active people who are not working. We should add those who are not looking for work, or who are working below their capacity. This group would include, for example, those who have thrown in the towel after months—or even years—of fruitless searches, as well as part-time workers who would like to work full-time. The sum of the unemployed and those we just discussed makes up what is called a country's labor slack. And it has always been a very high figure. In 2024, it will reach 5.5 million across the country, corresponding to one of the highest percentages in the European Union. The worrying thing is that, while the number of unemployed is always under scrutiny, celebrating or lamenting its fluctuations, the number of these other groups has remained unchanged for years, an increasingly consolidated social base.
For the labor market to function properly, four conditions must be met. The first three are: sufficient supply from companies, demand from the economically active population, and a satisfactory agreement between both parties; the existing imbalances in these elements require policies that can yield results in the medium or long term. There is also a fourth condition: that there is an easy way to match existing supply and demand.
This marriage of supply and demand is carried out primarily through professional social networks (LinkedIn, above all), temporary employment agencies (ETT), and personnel recruitment firms. But we mustn't forget that there is also a public employment service assigned this function. And, according to the latest data from the National Institute of Statistics, the percentage of people who have found work through the public employment service in the last three years has been only 1.9%. This extremely low and stagnant figure is generating proposals to improve its operation. One possibility is to improve the detail of information available on both sides of the equation: business needs and job seekers. It is necessary for supply and demand to be quickly found in what could be a kind of Tinder for employment. In the information age and the explosion of artificial intelligence, this should be feasible. All you have to do is sign up.
