- In the first quarter of 2013, 322,300 jobs were lost, 52,000 less than in the same period of 2012
- The temporary employment rate decreased 1.7 points in the last year, to 22.1%, the lowest since the second quarter of 1983
According to the estimates of the Survey of Active Population (EPA) prepared by the INE, in the first quarter of 2013 employment decreased by 322,300 people compared to the previous quarter, which represents a lower fall by 52,000 than that experienced in the same quarter of 2012. In the last year 798,500 jobs (4.6%) have been lost, which means moderating the rate of decline compared to the one registered in the previous quarter (-4.8%). Regarding unemployment, the number of unemployed people increased by 237,400 people, which is 128,600 people lower than that registered in the same period of the previous year. The unemployment rate increases by just over one point, to 27.16%, and the total number of unemployed people rises to 6,202,700.
The destruction of jobs in the first quarter of 2012 particularly affected the service sector whose employment level decreased by 170,500 jobs, 52.9% of the decrease in total employment. Construction and industry followed a great distance, with inter-quarterly reductions of 24,200 and 66,800, respectively. In agriculture, 60,800 jobs were lost.
Once adjusted for seasonal factors, the total employment figures show a loss that would be around 186,800 employed, with a fall rate of -1.1%, compared to -1.38% in the previous quarter.
The loss of salaried employment affected both the storms and the undefined, but the first group accused him with much more intensity. Temporary workers decreased by 194,400 in the quarter and 118,400 were employed with an indefinite contract. In relation to a year earlier, workers with an indefinite contract decreased 3.5%, one tenth less, and workers with temporary contracts slowed the rate of fall by just over a tenth, up to 12.1%. After this result, the temporary rate is reduced by 0.9 percentage points in the quarter, up to 22.1%, and compared to a year earlier it is reduced by 1.7 points. This rate is the lowest since the second quarter of 1983.
According to the working day, full-time employees decreased at an annual rate of 6.4% while part-time employees increased to 6.2%, rates that represent a slight moderation of the fall of 0.1 points in the first collective and an increase of 0.5 points in the second. After this result, the weight of part-time workers increases by 0.7 points in the quarter and 1.6 points compared to a year earlier, up to 16%, a rate that constitutes a historical maximum.
Employment decreased in the quarter by 71,400 in the public sector and 251,000 in the private sector, figures representing rates of interannual decline of 8.3% and 3.8% respectively. These rates represent an intensification of the 1.3-point drop in public employment and a half-point moderation in private.
The active population decreased by 85,000 people in the first quarter, which represents a variation rate of -0.4%. Compared to a year earlier, the active population decreased by 235,300 people, -1%, compared to -0.7% in the previous quarter.
The decrease of the active population responds to a decrease in the population (63,500 people less than in the last quarter of 2012 within the group of working age, between 16 and 64 years) and, to a lesser extent, to the reduction by one tenth of the activity rate (59.7%), more pronounced among men. Both the decline of the population and the number of assets derive mainly from the loss of foreign population, given that the national has been reduced to a very small extent. The foreign population of more than 16 years has fallen at an annual rate of 4.3% and within it the assets, to 5.1%.
Unemployment increases by 237,400 people (104,000 by correcting them for seasonality). The increase in the number of unemployed, once seasonally adjusted, goes from 2.04% in the last quarter to 1.74% in the first of 2013. The annual rate also slows down significantly, from 13.1% to 10% in the same periods. The total unemployed stands at 6,202,700 people and the unemployment rate increases by 1.1 points, to 27.2% of the active population. With seasonally adjusted data this rate is reduced to 26.6%, 0.5 points higher than the previous quarter.
The data of the Survey of Active Population reflect that the Spanish economy is still in a recessive phase, but they indicate that the rhythms of the fall in employment and the increase in unemployment are softened, in parallel to the estimated moderation in the fall of the exercise. This slowdown occurs despite the fact that the first quarter of the year is usually negative for employment in Spain from a seasonal point of view. It is foreseeable that the trend towards an improvement will take hold in the coming quarters, in line with the estimation of a progressive improvement in productive activity and the return to economic growth.
