According to statistics published today by the central government, the region has generated more than one in five of all new jobs nationwide (22%) during this period.
The number of contributors to Spain’s Social Security system has reached 3,844,895, the highest figure on record for this month, with 287 new jobs created each day. In addition, for the second consecutive month, Madrid is the autonomous community with the highest number of contributors, accounting for 17.8% of the national total and once again surpassing Catalonia, despite having one million fewer inhabitants. As for registered unemployment, it has fallen by 8,981 people (-3.1%) compared with last year, leaving 278,589 unemployed, the lowest figure for this period since 2008.
By sector, unemployment has declined across all of them, with Agriculture (-11.7%) and Construction (-9.8%) recording the largest drops. By gender, it fell by 3.4% among men and by 2.9% among women, while by education level the most notable decreases were among those with secondary education (-4.3%) and primary education or less (-4.4%). There was also a 3.9% reduction among those unemployed for less than one year; a 1.9% decline among the long-term unemployed; and a 1.2% decrease among those aged over 55, with the sharpest fall seen in the 30–54 age group (-5.2%).
Meanwhile, the number of self-employed workers rose by 4,443, a 1% increase year-on-year, bringing the total number of self-employed workers in the region to 438,706.