Spain sheds 162,840 contributors in August while its jobless count is the lowest for the month since 2007
Spain's social security system lost 162,840 contributors in August and the number of people registered as unemployed rose by 44,419 to 2,355,918. The monthly fall was concentrated among education workers whose contracts ended for the summer holidays. The yearly picture points the other way: the jobless count is down by 70,593 people against August 2025 and registered unemployment is at its lowest August level since 2007.
Economics & Markets··Night
August removes 162,840 contributors as registered unemployment rises by 44,419
Spain's social security system lost 162,840 contributors in August, which Euronews reported as the smallest August fall in affiliation since the pandemic. Figures from the state employment service SEPE show that registered unemployment rose by 44,419 people, or 1.92 per cent, from the previous month to 2,355,918 at the end of August, staying below 2.4 million. That is the lowest August level since 2007, before the financial crisis. Against August 2025 the jobless count is down by 70,593 people, or 2.91 per cent.[1], [2]
Services drive the rise while education drives the drop in affiliation
SEPE reported that against July registered unemployment rose by 28,563 in services, by 4,669 in construction and by 3,731 in industry, with a rise of 8,368 among people who had never worked and a fall of 912 in agriculture. Female registered unemployment rose by 22,741 to 1,418,757, its lowest August level since 2008. Male unemployment rose by 21,678 to 937,161, and unemployment among people under 25 rose by 8,168. Euronews reported that education was the largest single item in the loss of contributors: more than 78,000 people left affiliation as the summer holidays interrupted contracts.[1], [2]
The yearly picture: 680,000 jobs and 38.46 per cent of contracts permanent
The yearly picture differs from the monthly fall: Euronews reported that around 680,000 jobs were created over the year and that the unemployment rate fell to 9.87 per cent in the second quarter, its lowest since the first quarter of 2008. Foreign workers now exceed 3.5 million contributors, 15.9 per cent of the total labour force, and a regularisation process had added 337,917 contributors by the end of August. Elma Saiz, the minister for inclusion, social security and migration, described the picture as historic job growth. SEPE figures show 1,144,827 contracts registered in August, of which 440,274, or 38.46 per cent, were permanent.[1], [2]
