The number of individuals registered with Spain's social security system reached a new historical high of 21.78 million in May 2023, reflecting an increase of 195,736 individuals compared to April, marking a growth rate of 0.9%.

Daily figures have shown registrations exceeding 21.8 million during the last ten days of the month.

This surge in employment is mirrored by a reduction of 57,835 individuals in the registered unemployment figures from the State Public Employment Service (SEPE), bringing the total number of unemployed down to 2.45 million, a decrease of 2.3%.

These levels are comparable to those seen in 2008, just prior to the onset of the major financial crisis.

Comparative data indicate that both social security registrations and unemployment statistics for May are quite similar to those of the previous year, particularly within the services and hospitality sectors.

Improvements have been noted, with an increase of 76,120 persons employed in these sectors, representing almost half of the general employment framework, alongside a notable reduction of 42,930 unemployed individuals.

May is typically a transitional month during which employment contracts related to Holy Week conclude, leading to fluctuations in the employment data, followed by International Workers' Day celebrations on May 1st.

Anticipated further increases in employment are expected in the services and tourism sectors ahead of the summer season.

Monthly analysis reveals significant fluctuations in registrations, particularly during the early days of the May bridge holiday, with daily changes ranging from 96,250 to 60,600, including a termination of more than 48,000 registrations on the last business day of the month.

Key highlights from the employment data released by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration include an all-time high of women registered, with 10.3 million women now making up 47.4% of the total registrations, and a record number of self-employed individuals, surpassing 3.42 million, with an increase of over 12,000 from April.

The Minister of Inclusion emphasized that there are now more working women in Spain than ever, noting a five-point decrease in the gender pay gap since 2018, and reiterated a goal of reaching 23 million registered individuals by 2027 at the end of the current legislative term.

In May, the number of permanent contracts rose to 15.2 million, while the number of fixed-term contracts stabilized at 6.3% of the total.

The rate of temporary employment dropped below 12%, benefiting from improvements among younger workers, who have seen their share of temporary work decrease from over half to just 19% over seven years.

Additionally, the unemployment data from the Ministry of Labor show a decline in unemployment across all economic sectors, with especially notable reductions in the services sector.

The figures also reflected a positive trend in female unemployment and among younger job seekers, many of whom were previously unemployed.

The SEPE registered a reduction of more than 29,000 unemployed women in May, accounting for half of the total decrease in unemployment, bringing female unemployment to 1.48 million, the lowest figure since October 2008. Male unemployment was reported at 968,462 individuals, representing a decline of 2.88%.

The largest number of job contracts for those aged under 25 contributed to a reduction of youth unemployment by 6,426 individuals, resulting in a historic low of 171,003 unemployed in this age group.

The significant decreases in female and youth unemployment were highlighted by the second Deputy Prime Minister and Labor Minister, mentioning an ongoing reduction of what she termed 'disposable workers' due to decreasing temporality despite the prevailing seasonal employment in the tourism sector.

Unemployment decreased across all autonomous communities in May, with Andalusia, Madrid, Catalonia, and the Balearic and Canary Islands leading this trend ahead of the summer.

The decline in unemployment was also recorded in all 50 provinces, particularly in major cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, Cádiz, Málaga, and Sevilla.

However, the total number of new contracts registered in May fell to 1.32 million, which is 10,670 fewer than in the same month the previous year.

This marks an accumulated total of 104,000 fewer contracts in the first five months of the year, indicating a slight deceleration, which may be temporarily masked by the forthcoming summer peak in employment.