Employment continues to be in very good shape. Vice President Nadia Calviño advanced it this Wednesday and today the data has confirmed it. It was a record April, with 73,890 fewer unemployed and 238,436 more affiliates, which means reaching a total of more than 20.6 million Social Security contributors, the highest figure in the historical series.
If the year began with a weak January, as it always is in a month in which the end of the Christmas season is paid for, in February it was encouraged, and in March and April the data is very positive, both in the decrease unemployment and job creation. Easter has given an extra boost to employment in April.
With regard to affiliation, Social Security added a total of 20.6 million affiliates in April, the highest figure in the historical series. If in March the almost 20.4 million contributors were already a record, in April it was broken again. Specifically, last month it gained 238,436 contributors, which represents an increase of 1.7% compared to March. It is the largest increase in affiliates in a month of April and the second largest in absolute terms, only surpassed by that of July 2005. There are three consecutive months increasing the number of average affiliates, so that since the beginning of the year more have been added of 300,000 contributors to Social Security.
In seasonally adjusted terms, that is, adjusted to the calendar and the season, the affiliation data is also very positive. April adds 129,000 new contributors, which closes the first four-month period of the year with the creation of 420,000 jobs.
By sectors of activity, the great leap in affiliation occurred in the hospitality industry, with 119,000 more contributors, which represents a 9% increase compared to the previous month. They are followed, but at a distance, by the 18,000 new affiliates in commerce and the 10,000 in transport.
On the other hand, in relation to the quality of employment, the temporary rate remains at the historical minimum of 14%, which represents less than half of the 30% that was registered before the labor reform, according to what insists in remembering the Ministry of Labor. In those under 30 years of age, temporary employment has stood at 21%, when previously it was at 53%.
In relation to unemployment, the 73,890 fewer unemployed in April place registered unemployment below 2.8 million, which is the first time this month since 2008, that is, for 15 years. In this way, the unemployment data returns to the scenario prior to the financial crisis.
Unemployment falls in all sectors, especially in services, with 52,000 fewer unemployed, followed by industry, agriculture and construction. And if the autonomous communities are examined, unemployment is reduced in all of them, and in absolute figures where it falls the most is in Andalusia (20,500 fewer unemployed) and Catalonia (9,500 fewer). Unemployment decreases in both men and women, and also notably among young people, with a reduction of 9%.
Regarding hiring, 1,157,000 contracts were signed in April, of which 45%, 530,000, were permanent. Of these, 40% were full time, 23% part time and 35% permanent discontinuous.
