The Alicante labor market is showing a solid rebound, driven by strong Easter tourist occupancy and the May Day bridge, even as decade‑long uncertainties around recruitment persist.
Last month, accommodation, trade, health, and ancillary services attracted new businesses to the province. The result was an impressive 12,992 jobs, the best figure for this period in the historical series. This surge in employment also pushed Alicante to a new all‑time high of 723,547 Social Security affiliates. In short, never before have so many people worked in Alicante.
The prior record was set in the summer, particularly in July, when tourism peaked at 719,904 participants. This pattern suggests that April’s figure could be surpassed again soon.
Unemployment followed the same positive trend, with a reduction of 2,880 people and a registered total of 137,109, according to the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy. It’s important to note that many entrants to the labor market are not registered with employment agencies, so the decrease in formal unemployment can lag behind the rise in employment.
Sectors
Across activity sectors the hospitality and pioneering business creation surpassed 100 jobs each, contributing around 7,200 new positions. Bars, restaurants, and hotels alone accounted for 56% of all new jobs, highlighting the tourism sector’s strength despite inflation and reduced household purchasing power.
Alicante’s job gains extended to the manufacturing and services landscape, reinforcing how quickly the province can translate visitor demand into durable employment opportunities.
Alicante employs 10,346 more people, breaking the March job‑creation record
The hiring surge is notable across several sectors: trade added roughly 1,600 workers; administrative and ancillary services expanded by about 970; the health sector brought in 369 new employees; and the construction sector registered 232 new roles.
There was a minor setback to note in the industrial subsectors, where activity slowed during holidays and led to a decrease of 318 workers. This also helps explain a drop of 157 affiliates in the education sector.
More autonomous employment
Most of the newly created positions are wage jobs, while self‑employment also rose, reaching 139,729 with 812 new participants added according to the same sources.
Another notable trend shows a higher increase in employment among women, with 6,536 of the new jobs going to women and 6,456 to men.
Last‑minute bookings boosted hotel occupancy in Alicante during Easter
Quality of employment remains a focal point of reform discussions, with statistics underscoring the shift toward permanent contracts as the standard. In April, 38,444 contracts signed by Alicante workers were fixed‑term up to 58.3%, a marked change from the 12% recorded before the regulatory shift. The data are particularly meaningful given that tourism is a seasonal mainstay for employment.
In the broader Valencia Community, employment rose by 18,361 last month, bringing the total Social Security affiliations to 2,086,899 in the autonomous community. Unemployment fell by 4,854 people.
Source attribution: Ministry of Labor and Social Economy statistics and regional economic reports.