From the presidency of the Community of Madrid, the focus shifts to national forums as high-ranking officials exchange views on employment momentum. Isabel Diaz Ayuso, the ministerial circle around inclusion, and regional leaders like Juanma Moreno discuss a month widely described as historic for jobs. The consensus among political actors is that April marks a turning point in Spain’s labor market, a sentiment echoed across the broader policy landscape.
On the ground, government data released this Thursday show record employment figures with a surge in active workers. Spain now counts 20.6 million people employed, a milestone never reached before in an April. A revival in tourism plays a central role as markets move into warmer seasons, reinforcing gains across less seasonal sectors as well.
Yet the unemployment challenge persists. Among the European Union’s nations, Spain still faces less-than-full-time patterns in a significant portion of positions. Here are five key takeaways from what many are calling a historic April for the job market.
Employment: Spring Records
2022 ended with rough weather for job creation. The slowdown triggered alarms about inflation and rising interest rates impacting a resilient labor market, nudging the year into an uncertain path for 2023. Yet the current momentum feels distinctly different. Following a record increase of 206,000 jobs in March, April surpassed that with a robust rise, culminating in 238,436 new active workers. The total employment tally reached 20.6 million, a figure unmatched by any prior April. Even in the strongest boom years before the financial downturn, such a simultaneous peak in job creation and Social Security membership had not occurred.
In April, hotels and hospitality led the employment surge, aligning with spring holidays and expectations for the summer season. The sector’s recovery mirrors improvements across other industries that were hit hard by health restrictions during the pandemic, including air transport and leisure services. The government emphasizes that one in four newly created jobs after the pandemic lies in high-productivity sectors such as computing, telecommunications, science, and technical activities.
These trends point to a broader diversification of the economy, with services tied to travel and tourism acting as a catalyst while other industries push into higher productivity domains.
Unemployment: The Persistent Challenge
Unemployment remains the unresolved thread of Spain’s labor picture. Data from EPA and MEM paint a picture of a market hiring rapidly yet still facing stubborn unemployment rates. In April, the count of unemployed fell by 73,890, bringing the total to 2.7 million people. While this is the lowest figure since 2008, it remains the highest level within the European Union. Across gender lines, unemployment among men has fallen more steeply than among women, highlighting ongoing disparities in the recovery.
Regionally, both Spain and Catalonia have achieved historic levels of employment, yet the unemployment bar remains high compared to pre-crisis levels. Individuals seeking work for more than a year continue to face limited success; EPA indicates that four in ten job seekers fall into this long-term category.
One-Year Labor Reform: Full Implementation
The new labor reform shows its effects gradually. Agreed by the government, employers, and unions in December 2021 and taking full effect in January 2022, the measure’s complete application for companies with new contract types reached full validity in April. Since reform, permanent contracts grew from about 11 million to 13.8 million. Roughly half of new contracts now are permanent, a notable shift from pre-reform patterns.
Many of the previously temporary arrangements have evolved into contractual forms that are discontinuous or seasonal, or in some cases suspended. While this does not immediately worsen unemployment statistics, it does complicate the picture of long-term stability. The latest data show that three out of four regular contracts are permanent and full-time.
Warnings for the Self-Employed Group
The self-employed sector, despite a month of positive job creation, still faces volatility in hours worked. Since January, there has been a contraction relative to the same month last year, a trend not seen since the Great Recession. April, however, renewed momentum, and the year-over-year development turned positive again. April data show about 3.3 million self-employed workers registered in the RET system.
Self-employed workers are adapting to higher price pressures and the new tax quota based on net income. It remains to be seen how the group responds in the coming months, especially for those whose earnings fall just below the minimum quota threshold and consider unsubscribing if the quota framework is poorly aligned with reality.
Catalonia vs Madrid: April Job Growth
In April, Catalonia added significantly more jobs than Madrid, reflecting the region’s strong economic momentum. Catalonia generated 38,626 new jobs, while Madrid added 15,280, roughly 2.5 times fewer. The regional nods of support came from labor and business leaders, eager to compare models that put workers at the center, versus more flexible approaches seen elsewhere. When viewed on a year-over-year basis, Madrid appears to have grown substantially, with the city tally showing a notable rise in employment compared to Catalonia.
Analysts note that the Catalan model emphasizes long-term structural benefits for workers, while Madrid’s approach focuses on rapid job creation and a flexible labor market. The April figures illustrate contrasting strategies within Spain’s broader economic landscape. The discussions reflect an ongoing debate about policy design in the national economy and regional development trajectories.