The upward trend in unemployment in Catalonia is maintained for the second consecutive month. Specifically, the number of unemployed rose in August by 7,516 people, 2.3% more than in July. It is the community with the highest increase in unemployment in absolute numbers.
In total, 338,872 unemployed were recorded last month, 12,073 people less than in August of last year. The data published today by the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy also shows that employment has slowed down 1.61% in Catalonia, since it has lost 60,318 members after six consecutive months of growth. The total number of affiliates now stands at 3,369,395, which is 100,636 more than a year ago.
Unemployment rose in August in all the autonomous communities, except in La Rioja, where it fell by 49 people. In absolute terms, the most notable increases occurred in Catalonia (7,516), the Valencian Community (3,190) and Andalusia (2,882). While in percentage variation, the Catalan community was the third where it increased the most, with a monthly increase of 2.3%, followed by País Vaso (2.3%) and the Balearic Islands (3.3%).
Services were the sector in which unemployment increased the most in Catalonia, with 7,002 more unemployed compared to July. It also increased in industry, by 770, and in construction, by 538.
In August, 167,600 contracts were registered, of which 69,528 were permanent and 98,072 temporary, which represents a year-on-year decline of 40,322 contracts (-19.39%). While in month-on-month terms, recruitment fell by 31.55% with 77,250 fewer.
