- Total number of unemployed stands below four million for the first time since late 2008
- The unemployment rate falls to 17.2%, the lowest since the first quarter of 2009 and almost ten points less than the maximum
- The total number of employed persons rises to 18,813 million, which means that some two million jobs have already been recovered
- Most of the employment created in the last year is full-time and is concentrated in the private sector
- Households with all their active members unemployed fell by 117,100, to 1,277 million, the lowest figure in almost eight years.
The number of unemployed fell by 340,700 people in the second quarter of the year, a figure that is a historical record since the Active Population Survey (EPA) was published, according to data published by the INE. In the year as a whole, the number of unemployed fell by 660,400 (14.4%) and the total number of unemployed fell from four million (to 3,914 million). The unemployment rate falls to 17.22%, the lowest since the beginning of 2009 and almost three points less than a year ago. Employment increased by 375,000 employed persons in the quarter and 512,300 in the year as a whole, which means an acceleration in the annual rate of more than half a point, up to 2.8%. All employment created in the quarter is full-time and most of it is concentrated in the private sector. The number of employed persons rises to 18,813 million, the highest number since 2010.
The EPA figures reflect the dynamism of the Spanish economy, whose growth exceeds 3% in the first part of the year. It highlights the historical fall in unemployment for any quarter of the year since the EPA was published and the acceleration in the rate of job creation. These results represent a great advance in the objective of recovering the figures of the labor market that existed in Spain before the crisis. The Government's forecast is that by the end of 2019 the number of employed will exceed 20 million and that a year later the unemployment rate will drop to 11%. Of the more than 3.5 million jobs lost in the crisis, close to two million have been recovered (1.86), the number of unemployed has decreased by 2.4 million and the unemployment rate has been cut by almost ten points from the maximum reached in the first quarter of 2013.
In the second quarter of the year the number of unemployed has decreased by 340,700 people, compared to a drop of 216,700 a year earlier. It decreases in all sectors, especially in services (144,000 fewer unemployed), in part because Easter was celebrated in April. The number of long-term unemployed has also decreased (142,900 people who lost their jobs more than a year ago) and increases by 9,100 among those seeking the first job. In the last 12 months unemployment decreased by 660,400 people (14.4% less compared to 11.2% the previous quarter). The number of unemployed people who lost their job more than a year ago is reduced by 426,100 and by 59,000 among those seeking the first job.
Employment increased by 375,000 people in the second quarter, up from a rise of 271,400 a year ago. Most of them have been concentrated in the private sector and are full-time jobs, with temporary contracts (255,900 employees) and permanent contracts (93,600), and in all non-agricultural sectors, especially services. In annual terms, the rate of job creation increased by half a point, to 2.8%, with 512,300 new employees, almost entirely in the private sector (98.3%), with full-time jobs (443,300 more ) to a greater extent than part-time (69,000 more) and with more temporary contracts (299,700) than permanent contracts (202,800). The temporary rate stands at 26.81%, more than one point higher than a year ago.
The situation of households with all their active members unemployed has improved both in the quarter and in the last year. In the second quarter this figure has decreased by 117,100, to 1,277 million, the lowest record since the fourth quarter of 2009. For its part, the number of households in which all its active members are employed increases by 269,200, up to 10, 1 million. In the last year, the number of households with at least one asset in which all assets are unemployed has decreased by 216,200, while those with all their assets occupied has grown by 439,000.
