Service Sector Drives Job Growth in Spain Amid Agricultural Resurgence
Employment in Spain saw a significant increase in 2024, with the workforce growing by 500,000 individuals, mirroring the gains of the previous year. Unemployment figures dropped by 146,738, indicating a reduction of 16,000 job seekers compared to 2023. These statistics reflect a robust labor market performance for the second consecutive year, despite ongoing international instability, and demonstrate widespread improvements across various sectors.
Data released by the Ministry of Labor reveals that all sectors experienced a decline in unemployment during the past year. The agricultural sector led the way with a notable percentage decrease of 14.55%, followed by construction at 7.15%, industry at 6.72%, and services at 4.88%. This ranking closely resembles that of 2023, although there was a shift in the order of construction and industry.
In absolute terms, the services sector recorded the most significant reduction in unemployment, with 94,500 fewer job seekers, followed by construction (-15,288), industry (-14,521), and agriculture (-14,232). This ranking, however, differs from the previous year's figures, where industry ranked second after services.
The substantial growth in employment throughout 2024 was primarily driven by the addition of half a million workers, surpassing the iconic threshold of 21 million contributors to the Social Security system. This landmark achievement occurred in April and was reaffirmed in December, marking 21.3 million workers, the highest recorded for that month.
According to average affiliation data, the bulk of new employment opportunities arose in the services sector (433,238), with industry following as the second largest contributor (38,468), and construction (30,051) and agriculture (195) trailing behind. Notably, the agricultural sector marked its first job creation in four years, recovering from a loss of nearly 94,000 positions between 2021 and 2023. However, the total number of new jobs created (501,952) fell short of 2023's total of 539,739, with the exception of agriculture, showing lower increases across other sectors in year-on-year comparisons.
The employment growth was observed nationwide, except for the autonomous city of Ceuta, which reported fewer job creations than in 2023 (31 jobs less). Among the various autonomous communities, the most significant percentage increases occurred in the Canary Islands (3.35%) and the Balearic Islands (3.19%), generating a joint total of 46,500 new jobs throughout the year. In terms of provincial performance, Jaén experienced the highest year-on-year growth at 5.27%, driven by the addition of 24,000 new workers in December.
In overall terms, as is often the case due to geographic and demographic factors, the Community of Madrid recorded the highest number of new workers (114,779), followed by Andalucía (93,770) and Catalonia (81,016). The Community of Valencia ranked fourth with 50,446 new positions, bolstered by 6,427 new jobs created in December despite severe flooding that impacted Valencia province in late October, concluding the year with a net increase of 28,393 workers (2.47%).
Considering these results, the decline in unemployment was widespread across the country, with the exception of Navarra, where a slight increase of 1.22% was noted. Conversely, Extremadura (8.91%), Andalucía (8.65%), and Galicia (8.24%) reported the most significant unemployment reductions. According to Labor Ministry data, over 40% of the total decrease in unemployment in 2024 was attributed to Andalucía, which accounted for 60,101 of the 146,738 jobless individuals who exited the unemployment rolls nationwide.
