Jobless numbers down again

Wednesday, 06 June 2012 08:30

Written by Editor

The number of people filing for unemployment benefits fell by 30,113 or 0.63% in May, compared with the previous month, the Labour Ministry announced on Monday. This brings the number of unemployed down to 4.71 million, after reaching a record high of 4.75 million in March. The unemployment rate in Spain is the highest in the eurozone at 24.3%, according to European Union figures released last week.

The government has introduced a number of labour market reforms to try to reduce unemployment, which include cutting back on severance pay and restricting inflation-linked salary increases. The measures have proved very unpopular with unions and workers, although polls show that some 70 per cent of Spaniards realise they were necessary.

On the other hand, the government has been forced to approve billions of euros of spending cuts and tax increases in an effort to reduce its debt levels, which have a negative impact on employment within the economy.