María Dolores Cospodel was ready for record unemployment figures on Monday. Given the Peoples' Party's extreme optimism about jobs figures, an increase of just 31 jobs seems a little ridiculous. Outside of the political context, however, the publication of yesterday's figure shows that for the first time since 2000, August unemployment figures are finally down. This is the month that unemployment typically rises because this is when many seasonal labor contracts run out.
The figure paints a hopeful picture. If job cuts continue to slow down, then we could be seeing the end of a recession in Spain. That said, it should be remembered that registered unemployment does not consider those whose benefits have run out or the people who are looking for work but haven't filed for government assistance.
Also, full-time hiring fell 6% in August and both manufacturing and services jobs are being cut. The fact that 99,069 fewer workers are contributing to Social Security proves that the the labor market will continue to struggle. Until the economy starts to grow, jobs will still be scarce. To see if we are seeing a real change to employment trends, we will have to watch registered unemployment figures for the next several months.
Considering this perspective, Fátima Báñez should reconsider her proposed changes to labor reforms and enact a real reduction to government contracts that helps companies create jobs.
