Spanish left sees boost ahead of regional elections

The country’s left-wing government received an unexpected boost for its future political ambitions on Thursday ahead of Spain’s regional elections: record employment figures and a tangible reduction of unemployment data, a considerable achievement in post-pandemic and war, times.

Currently, there are only three weeks ahead of Spain’s regional elections and just eight months before the general vote.

According to official data, the Spanish Social Security added in April 238,436 workers, a record figure for that month and the second-best figure in recent years in the country, the Government announced.

Meanwhile, unemployment fell by 73,890 people to 2.78 million -a level not seen since 2008- new data from the Spanish Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration showed.

The Spanish Minister of Labour, Yolanda Díaz (Unidas Podemos/Sumar), acknowledged that there is still much work to do to curb unemployment but insisted that the path “is proving to be the right one” because there is “more and more employment and of better quality”.

Thursday, 4 May has been a particularly bright and sunny day for Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez (PSOE/S&D) regarding tangible achievements: a record was also broken in April: 20.6 million people are affiliated with the Spanish Social Security System.

Particularly important for the future perspectives of the Spanish youth: the number of unemployed under-25s fell by 19,848 to an all-time low of 195,251, the Ministry highlighted.

Spain has the highest overall unemployment rate (12.8%) among OECD countries and boasts a much higher figure than the 6% EU average. Spain performs even worse for youth unemployment, which affects 29.3% of working people under 25.

As for the number of people registered in the State Public Employment Service (SEPE), it fell by 73,890 in April and left the total at 2,788,370, figures not seen since 2008, the Spanish Ministry of Labour reported.

“The figure takes us back to the (employment) flourishing scenario before the financial crisis (of 2008), with the lowest unemployment figures in the records”, the same sources added.

In an interview with EFE, the Minister for Inclusion and Social Security, José Luis Escrivá (PSOE/S&D), stressed that these figures are “historic”.

In seasonally adjusted terms, more than 420,000 new workers were affiliated with Social Security between January and April: the best first quarter in many years, something the Minister described as a “fantastic” performance.

“In 2022 (…) 480,000 jobs were created. In the first quarter of the year (2023), we have already created 420,000 jobs”, the minister added.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Economic Affairs, Nadia Calviño (PSOE/S&D), also showcased the “extraordinary performance” of the Spanish labour market and said that the “record levels” of Social Security enrolment last month “confirm the acceleration of job creation”, after post-pandemic harsh times.

Spain will hold regional and municipal elections on 28 May, with a general election expected to take place in December, during the country’s final month of presidency of the EU Council.

(Fernando Heller | EuroEFE.EURACTIV.es)