Spain registers 21 million national insurance contributors for the first time in history

Office worker

Compared with the previous month, there were 77,876 more national insurance contributors.

There are now around 1.6 million more contributors than before the pandemic.

The figure for the average number of contributors (in the original series) remained at record levels, at 20,901,967. This means 193,585 more employed people than in February, a much higher increase than the average for 2017 to 2019, which was 150,000 employed. The year-on-year growth in the number of contributors was 2.6%, with 525,414 more employed people than a year ago.

"In March, the number of contributors reached record highs and the structural change brought about by the labour reform was accentuated, with a boost to jobs in the highest quality sectors", said the Minister for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz. "The number of affiliated women is the highest in the series, with almost 10 million women working, 47.35% of the total," she added.

In the last month, the sector that has grown the most in the general scheme is Hotels and Catering, with 81,151 more contributors, for a total of 6.1%. This sector is followed by Commerce, with 13,643, and Education, with 11,744. All sectors of the general scheme are growing or are stable.

Daily contributor figures have remained above 20.9 million since 14 March, exceeding 21 million for the first time on 25 March.

Higher employment growth than other major economies

Compared to pre-pandemic levels (December 2019), contributor numbers have grown by more than 1.6 million people in seasonally adjusted terms. Moreover, job creation compared to pre-pandemic levels in Spain (+8.3%) outpaced that of the major European countries (France, +5%; Italy +2.9%; Germany, +1.5%).

Employment growth in these countries since the war in Ukraine began is also comparatively higher, with Spain growing by 6.3%, and France and Germany by less than 2% in the same period.

9.9 million women working

This good employment performance is more pronounced among women. In March, there were 9,896,150 female contributors, 297,948 more than in the same month of 2023, meaning that more than half the employment created in the last year corresponds to women (56.7%).

Female employment growth since the year before the pandemic stands at 11.8%, and is 4.1 points higher than the 7.7% increase among men. The gap in the labour market is therefore closing. Women now account for 47.35% of all workers, which is the highest level in the series.

In the special scheme for self-employed workers, the number of women contributors has increased by 6.2%, compared to the 1.2% growth in male employment, and they now account for 36.8% of the total.

High added value

The increased contributor figures compared to the pre-pandemic level is particularly strong in high value-added sectors, such as Information and Communication and Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities. These sectors are showing growth of more than 16% compared to the pre-pandemic situation. In fact, more than 1 in 5 new contributors have joined these two sectors since then.

Notably, they are activities with greater stability and quality of employment. The weight of full-time permanent contracts exceeds 85% in the case of Information and Communication and 75% in Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities. Meanwhile, temporary employment levels have fallen even more than in the other sections, to 5% in the case of Information and Communication and 7.5% in Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities. These contributors have higher salaries and therefore higher contribution bases. Specifically, in the Information and Communication sector these bases are 36% higher than in all sectors, and 15% higher in Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities.

More than 3.3 million new permanent contributors and a low number of temporary contracts

Two years after the entry into force of the labour reform, its positive effects on stabilising employment and improving its quality can be clearly seen. Overall, there are now 3.3 million more (3,329,793) contributors on permanent contracts than in December 2021, the last month before the reform came into force.

Moreover, in March, the percentage of employees with permanent contracts stood at 87.3%, a record high, up 17.3 points since the labour reform. In this regard, the temporary employment rate remains at a historical minimum (12.7%). In the case of the under-30s, the reduction in the temporary employment level is more intense, dropping by 33.6 percentage points (from 53% to 19.4%) compared to its pre-reform level.

The effects of the labour reform are also noticeable in the evolution of the number of full-time permanent contracts issued over the year, growing more strongly (4.7% year-on-year, for a total of 429,645 more) than part-time contracts (4.4%, for a total of 103,490) and discontinuous permanent contracts (2.1%, for a total of 18,174).

Meanwhile, the number of workers under Temporary Redundancy remains at minimum levels at around 11,600 people, 0.1% of all contributors.

Non official translation