Labor reform reshapes Alicante’s job market, curbing contract churn and boosting stability
Labor reform brought a shift not only in how much work is available but in how work arrangements are secured. Indefinite contracts are becoming the norm, replacing the long-standing pattern of one-year deals that turned many workers into perpetual fillers for temporary openings. The sooner workers could sign a new year-long contract, the more precarious their careers appeared. Constant uncertainty kept earnings low and made it difficult to plan for the future, hindering long-term professional growth.
Last year saw a radical turn. In Alicante, the number of people entering the workforce under insecure terms dropped sharply. A regional annual report from the Sepe Occupations Observatory highlights this improvement within the province’s labor market. As new regulations took hold, total contract activity fluctuated with weather-related disruptions, yet the underlying trend pointed toward greater stability and fewer repeated renewals.
Overall, the total volume of registered contracts declined by 2.29 percent due to storms and other interruptions. Despite this, the number of people finding steady employment rose by 8.87 percent year over year. A permanent position eliminates the need to sign multiple new contracts, which explains the rise in stable employment alongside a dip in contract churn.
On the street level, the effects are visible. Waiting staff on terraces, factory floor workers, and hotel staff have all felt the difference as employers move toward longer-lasting arrangements. The total number of workers who signed at least one contract during the year rose from 167,562 in 2021 to 188,658 in the most recent period, with a subset reaching two contracts during the year (68,699 total compared with 61,642 previously). Yet the most pronounced gains appeared among workers who faced the greatest insecurity.
In Alicante, there was a noticeable drop in the number of people who held more than ten contracts in a single year, sliding from 4,264 in 2021 to 2,164 in the latest year. Within that group, 1,241 workers signed between 11 and 15 contracts, while 923 exceeded that figure. The pattern suggests a tightening of the most unstable arrangements as more positions shift to permanent or longer-term contracts.
First-year reforms brought a striking and much-discussed outcome: roughly 272,000 workers in Alicante entered the year as unidentified or unclassified in terms of long-term job status. Jose Maria Ruiz Olmos, Employment Secretary for l’Alacantí-les Marines, describes this moment as encouraging. He notes that while some highly specialized trades continue to rely on short-term moves from job to job, a broader trend shows less reliance on contract chaining used to place workers on precarious footing. The practice of stacking contracts, viewed by many unions as a form of legal fraud, has diminished as more employers embrace steadier staffing models (Sepe data and local observer reports).
Yolanda Diaz, who led the regional employment office and remains a prominent voice in the sector, emphasizes the broader benefits of reduced insecurity. She argues that even essential roles in hospitality and services require training and compliance that pay off for companies when workforces are stable. Stable templates help both employees and employers, she says, by reducing turnover costs and improving service consistency.
Industry leaders acknowledge the mixed picture. CEV employers point to the ongoing challenge of turnover, noting that even as permanent contracts rise, turnover remains a concern. They highlight the focus on controlling voluntary departures as a key factor in sustaining workforce stability, even when the number of long-term contracts grows.
Turning to earnings, the broader labor market shows a worldwide uptrend in the wake of the pandemic. Salvador Navarro and his team describe this as a major challenge for current recruitment and retention, with issues such as compliance, dysfunctions, higher replacement costs, and gradual erosion of institutional knowledge. The uptick in partial contracts reflects ongoing adjustments as the market recalibrates after the shockwaves of the crisis.
Unions acknowledge progress but stress that room for improvement remains. Part-time work continues to be a focal point, particularly because income levels under this arrangement often fall below full-time earnings. Sepe data show a decline in full-time contracts from 58.9 percent to 49.17 percent within a single year. Part-time roles account for about 33.15 percent, while discontinuous contracts have risen to 17.68 percent. There is also a noticeable gender dynamic, with women making up the majority of part-time roles and temporary contracts recorded on the same day in large numbers. The data reveal a persistent imbalance that policy makers and employers must address to ensure fairer opportunities across the board.
The current landscape suggests that reform has begun to bend the curve toward more stable employment, but the journey is not finished. It requires ongoing attention to training, wage progression, and the simplification of hiring processes so that both workers and businesses can plan with greater confidence. The conversation continues in Alicante as unions, employers, and public authorities work to solidify gains and translate them into durable economic growth for the region. (Sepe Occupations Observatory)
In summary, the reform that began to reshape Alicante’s labor market is slowly delivering more predictable career paths for many workers, even as it leaves room for improvement in the most challenged sectors. The balance between protecting workers from chronic insecurity and maintaining a flexible economy remains the central question for policymakers, unions, and employers alike.