Job creation slows in July and unemployment falls to its lowest level in three years.

The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration have released unemployment and social security affiliation data , respectively, for the month of July. The results, according to experts, are positive, although below expectations : the increase in social security affiliation is weak, with 4,408 new affiliations, a 0.02% increase. Thus, the total number of social security affiliations in Spain is 21.86 million. Unemployment fell by 1,357 people in July, the worst figure in the last three years. Thus, the total number of unemployed people stood at 2.4 million, a year-on-year decrease of 5.7%.

According to Randstad Research, the membership figures represent the third-worst statistical performance in the last 25 years. In July of last year, membership fell by 9,783 people. However, in the same month in 2023, it grew by nearly 22,000 members, so figures tend to vary year by year.

Similarly, the CEOE employers' association warns that, despite the total number of members reaching a historic record, the increase in membership "is lower than the average for the July months prior to the pandemic, from 2014 to 2019." This stands at 52,196 people, so, despite the peak number of employed workers, the membership figures end up being modest.

On the other hand, it is important to pay attention to the differences in growth between permanent and temporary contracts. As BBVA Research highlights, the number of registered workers with permanent contracts rose by 0.2% monthly in July, while those with temporary contracts grew by 0.8%. As a result, the temporary employment rate rose by one-tenth of a percentage point in July to 13.7%, exacerbating a problem that Spain has been experiencing for years. Minister Elma Saiz welcomed the data, stating that, despite the slowdown, "quality employment" is being created.

Meanwhile, employment figures released by the Ministry of Labor show that unemployment fell by 1,357 people in July, a decrease of 0.06%, leaving the total number of unemployed at 2.4 million. Meanwhile, year-on-year, unemployment fell by 145,631 people, a 5.71% decrease.

Based on recent data, this is the most modest drop in unemployment in July in the last three years. In the same month in 2024, unemployment fell by 10,830 people, while in 2023 it fell by 10,968. Therefore, the conclusion reached after looking at the data is that job creation has slowed somewhat. In this regard, the CEOE warns that this is due both to "the reduction in hours worked and the drop in productivity per employee."

Similarly, BBVA Research points out a detail that is easy to overlook. Despite the 1,357-person reduction in unemployment, if the seasonally adjusted figure is considered, the research center estimates that unemployment increased by around 1,200, marking the first increase in the statistic since September 2023.

By sector, unemployment increased in the construction sector, with 100 more unemployed, in industry, with 400 more, and especially in services, with 2,000 more. And regarding the autonomous regions, registered unemployment fell in six of the 17 autonomous regions and in Ceuta and Melilla. The largest decreases were recorded in Andalusia (-8,035) and Asturias (-1,296).

In terms of employment, the best performance was in the Balearic Islands (+12,579), Galicia (+10,835) and the Valencian Community (+6,968) .

Given these figures, the majority union for civil servants, CSIF, lamented the loss of 179,267 jobs in the education sector during the months of June and July. The effect was even more dramatic last month, with 123,699 fewer jobs in the sector, mostly corresponding to "interim staff on substitute status or filling vacancies," according to CSIF, which denounced the high level of precariousness and instability in the sector, with a staffing shortage of almost 44,000 teachers.

For her part, Labor Minister Yolanda Díaz described Spain's figures as "historic" and justified the limited drop in unemployment by saying that hiring has been brought forward during the holiday season since the pandemic.