Unfilled jobs in Spain have reached a record of 149,645 in the first quarter of the year, according to the figures published yesterday by the INE. They are 9,000 more than in the previous quarter and also three times more than a decade ago, when the country’s workers were not in a position to refuse an opportunity nor companies to offer hard-to-fill jobs due to the high added value .
Of all vacancies, 89.2% correspond to the service sector, compared to 6.6% in industry and 4.1% in construction. However, behind the sectoral percentages there are many nuances. In the analysis of the INE data by activity, it can be seen that trade and hospitality are still in the first positions, but also a volume at maximum levels in businesses with a technological component.
In the first quarter, 11,178 communications jobs remained unfilled, with another 10,727 in professional, scientific and technical activities. Each of the figures exceeds the hospitality industry separately. This push and that of the public administration, which without reaching maximums accumulates 34% of the vacancies, is what has brought the data known yesterday to record.
A report just published by KPMG shows that 75% of companies have difficulties in incorporating the talent they require and that the percentage rises to 84% of large companies, which are those that invoice more than 200 million euros per year. Among the technological ones, it reaches 93%.
This trend coincides with the difficulties in finding workers on the other side, that of the lowest paid or most ungrateful jobs. There are 14,478 vacancies in trade and vehicle repair, 8,217 in hospitality and 5,002 in transport and storage.
The disparity of qualifications also means that the issue is approached from different perspectives. Sources from the CEOE point out that “the structural problem in Spain and Europe that increases the number of vacancies has to do with the adjustment of skills”, which is why they are calling for training plans. From UGT, taking into account the working conditions of jobs with less added value, they highlight “the problem of salaries”.
The Minister of Industry, Héctor Gómez, yesterday defended the potential of the FP to offer “necessary professional profiles, always together with the private sector”.
The issue of unfilled vacancies also generates disparity of opinion in the central government. While the Ministry of Social Security, led by José Luis Escrivá, considers it necessary to hire foreign-born workers, from the Ministry of Labor, with Yolanda Díaz at the head, the thesis is that the problem of labor is exaggerated in Spain.
The truth is that Eurostat data places the country at the bottom of Europe for vacancies. The underemployment rate in Spain was 0.9% in the first quarter, the lowest in the entire EU with Bulgaria, Poland and Romania. In the euro zone, the average is 3%, with percentages of 4.7% in Belgium, the Netherlands and Austria.
By autonomous communities, Madrid, with 36,812 vacancies, has 24% of the total, ahead of Catalonia, which has 29,314, 19%. They are followed by Andalusia, Valencia and Castile and Leon. La Rioja, Extremadura and Cantabria are where there are fewer of them.
The INE also published yesterday the average cost per worker in the first quarter. It was 2,897 euros per month, 6.2% more than a year earlier. What went up the most were the mandatory Social Security contributions, by 7%.
The regional disparity stands out. In Madrid the cost is 3,513 euros, in Euskadi 3,334 and in Catalonia, 3,135. At the bottom, almost 1,300 euros away, is Extremadura, with 2,260. The number of hours worked increased by 1.9%, up to 34.7 per week, so the effective labor cost per hour rose less, by 4.2%.
