The labour market in the second quarter of 2024 has performed particularly well, reaching record highs for employment, labour force and workers in the private sector.

The number of employed persons reached 21,584,700 in the second quarter of 2024 with seasonally adjusted data, the highest figure in the historical series, according to data from the Labour Force Survey (EPA) published today by the National Statistics Institute (INE). With gross data, employment reached almost 21.7 million people.

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The number of employed persons reaches 21,600,000 in the second quarter, a new record high

In the last quarter, 80,000 jobs were created in seasonally adjusted terms (0.4% more) and 434,700 jobs in gross data, with a growth of 2.05% compared with the first quarter.

The data confirm the historical performance of employment in the second quarter, with record employment figures and also a record active population, which increased by 212,100 people to 24.4 million, also the highest in the series, which shows the confidence of workers in the dynamism of the labour market.

In this context, unemployment fell by 222,600 persons in the last quarter, or 7.47%, to 2,755,300 persons. The unemployment rate continued to fall to 11.27%, the lowest since 2008, with a decrease of more than one point in the last quarter.

Youth unemployment also continued to fall, by more than one point in the last three months, to 26.6%, its lowest level since 2008.

Employment is also more stable, with an increase of 272,000 permanent workers in the last quarter to almost 15.5 million, bringing the temporary employment rate to 15.95%. Likewise, from April to June, full-time employment increased by 433,500 people.

This improvement in the labour market has been generalised, with increased employment and reduced unemployment in practically all the Autonomous Communities and economic sectors.

It is also worth highlighting the great dynamism of the private sector, which for the first time exceeded 18.12 million employed, having created more than 98% of jobs in the last quarter. And also the positive evolution of hours worked, which increased by 5.6% in the second quarter.

This good performance of the labour market is reflected in the improvement in the situation of families, with the fall of almost 110,000 in the number of households with all their active members unemployed in the last quarter to 868,300, a historic low, and the increase of 220,800 in those with all their active members in employment, to 11,765,800.

Evolution of the main indicators over the last year
Employment increased by 429,300 persons in the last year (+2%) to 21,684,700 persons. Employment grew in all sectors except agriculture. The sector where employment increased the most was Services, with 207,900 more workers, followed by Industry, with 148,200 and Construction, with 74,600.

Regarding the Autonomous Communities, employment increased in most regions in the last year. The largest increases occurred in Valencia, with 97,600 more employed, Andalusia, 82,600 and Madrid, with 70,400.

The private sector accounted for most of the employment created in the last 12 months, with the creation of 372,200 jobs, to over 18.12 million private jobs, compared with 54,100 created by the public sector, which stands at just over 3.55 million jobs.

Full-time employment also continued to grow, with an increase of 259,900 persons in the last year, well above part-time employment, which grew by 66,400.

By gender, female employment has increased by 254,300 persons in the last year, exceeding 10 million employed women. Male employment in year-on-year terms also rose, by 172,000 workers.

Unemployment fell by 52,900 persons (-1.88%) in the last year, bringing the total number of unemployed down to 2,755,300, bringing the unemployment rate down to 11.27%. Unemployment fell in all sectors in the last year, especially in Agriculture, with 12,400 less unemployed, and Industry with 8,400 less unemployed.

It should be noted that during the last 12 months the number of people who lost their job more than a year ago fell by 21,000 and those looking for their first job by 10,600.

By Autonomous Communities, the largest decreases in unemployment in annual terms occurred in Andalusia, with 79,500 fewer unemployed, Madrid, with 18,600 fewer, and the Canary Islands, with 17,600 fewer.

The number of unemployed women fell by 45,400 in the last year and by 7,500 among men.

In the last 12 months, the number of households with all members unemployed decreased by 50,500 and the number of households with all members employed increased by 211,600.