The Spanish labor market loses steam at the end of the year at the gates of an uncertain 2023, but stands with employment and unemployment records
2022 has been the year -economically speaking- of the war in Ukraine, of the lack of supplies for certain sectors, of the biggest price escalation since the 1980s and also the first of the new labor reform, the effects of which have made clear imprint on statistics. The temporary levels have been reduced to historic lows in the private sector; although they are still one of the highest in all of Europe.
The main objective of the norm agreed between the Government, employers and unions was to reduce the high levels of eventuality that have historically characterized the Spanish labor market. To the point of constituting an anomaly within the framework of European labor relations, with rates that were double or triple those of neighboring states with similar economies. And, after one year in force, the regulation has managed to capture record decreases in statistics, which are mainly explained by an increase in stable work since full time.
Temporality: Historical lows, EU maximums
Spain has lived for decades in a distant galaxy in terms of job stability. Year after year the data Eurostat show that eventuality rates in the Spanish labor market are substantially higher than in the rest of the states of the Union. In 2021 the percentage of temporary workers was twenty-one%, compared to an average of 11% in Europe. A high turnover that drew a duality in the Spanish labor market, with some permanent workers with good and protected conditions, compared to other temporary, vulnerable and low-paid workers.
The limits on temporary hiring and the elimination of the work and service contract -the main focus of contracting on demand and without a specific expiration date- have managed to lower these high percentages, although they are still higher than the European average. According to the latest data from the EPA, the eventuality in the private sector has dropped to 14.8%. A percentage that brings Spaniards closer to standards portuguese (14.3%), although still far from the French (11.9%) or germans (9.2%).
Discontinuous fixed: Minimum incidence
One of the controversies that have arisen over the interpretation of the effects of the labor reform has been linked to the discontinuous fixed. These workers are considered permanent, while although they are not operational all year round, the company is obliged to call them back from time to time or fire them, with a compensation. The detractors of the reform allege that the drop in eventuality is mainly explained by the proliferation of this figure, with worse conditions than those of a full-time permanent worker.
The EPA data show that the proliferation of discontinuous fixes only explains a small part of this increase in stability, while currently the 95% of workers with an indefinite contract are ‘classic’ permanent workers. In the last year, 1.3 million permanent and permanent jobs have been created throughout the year.
Statisticians warn that the EPA does not accurately register the global weight of discontinuous permanent contracts, although the inertia shown by the data is similar to that of Social Security affiliation, which better portrays the immediate evolution of this type of contract .
Working day: More indefinite full-time
One of the concerns of the labor scholars was that companies would replace the temporary contract with an indefinite one, but part-time, in order to maintain a certain internal flexibility. That’s not happening, according to EPA data. At the moment, the increase in occupancy is mainly due to full time, while the percentage of workers with a part-time contract is lower than last year. specifically the 14.4% of employees have a part-time contract, compared to 14.5% in 2021 or 15.9% before the covid.
Youth: The main beneficiaries
A temporary contract is a vital ballast that affects procedures such as the renting or buying a home. The unknown of how long the employment relationship will last means that, in many cases, banks deny loans or landlords rule out certain tenants; among others.
Something that historically has been a burden for the emancipation of young people. These are being the main beneficiaries of this decrease in temporary employment that the labor reform has brought. If before the norm more than half (52.5%) of those under 30 years of age had a temporary contract, after one year of it said percentage has dropped to 34.9%.
At the gender level, the new hiring rules have had a very similar effect between mens Y womenalthough the eventuality among the latter continues to be two points higher (15.9%) than among men (13.9%).
Sharp drop in eventuality in Catalonia
The fall in temporary employment in the private sector has been transversal in all territories. Catalonia It has been one of the beneficiary territories, with the casualty rate going from 18.8% at the end of 2021 to 12.5% in 2022. The other great locomotive of the Spanish economy, Madridhas also registered a strong decrease, going from 17.7% to 11.3%.