Press Release 21/07/2023

SURVEY ON POPULATION IN RELATION TO ACTIVITY. II/2023

The number of people out of work fell by 14,500 and the unemployment rate dropped to 7.4% in the second quarter of 2023 in the Basque Country

There were 10,800 more people in work and the employment rate rose to 70.1%

Data from the second quarter of 2023 on the labour market in the Basque Country showed 10,800 more people in work and 14,500 fewer unemployed people than in the previous quarter, according to Eustat data. There were an estimated 77,600 unemployed people this quarter and the figure for people in work stood at 971,600, 1.1% more than in the first quarter of 2023.

The unemployment rate for the Basque Country stood at 7.4%, 1.3 percentage points down on the first quarter of 2023. As a result of the evolution in the employed and unemployed population, the activity rate was 56.1% in the second quarter of 2023, down 0.2 percentage points on the previous quarter.

By province and compared to the previous quarter, Bizkaia saw 8,900 more people in work, Gipuzkoa 2,200 and in Álava there were 300 fewer employed people. Regarding the capitals, in Bilbao there were 4,400 more people in work; however, employment decreased by 100 people in Vitoria-Gasteiz and by 3,200 in San Sebastián.

The greatest increase in employment occurred among women (+7,600), whilst there were 3,200 more men in work. With regards to nationality, the number of Spanish nationals in work increased by 10,100 (+1.2%), whilst the number of foreign nationals in work rose by 700 (+0.8%).

Employment increased in all sectors, except Industry

The working population in the Basque country increased by 8,600 (+1.2%) in the services sector, by 2,500 (+4.6%) in Construction and by 500 (+6.1%) in the primary sector, whilst in Industry it fell by 800 (-0.4%).

The employment rate, calculated as the percentage of people in work aged 16 to 64 over the total for these ages, rose by one percentage point compared to the previous quarter, standing at 70.1%. This figure reached 73.1% for men and 67.1% for women.

As regards nationality, the highest employment rate was recorded among Spanish nationals, at 71.7%, up one percentage point in respect of the previous quarter, whereas for foreign nationals it rose by three tenths to stand at 56.8%.

By province, Gipuzkoa had the highest employment rate, with 71.9% and an increase of 0.7 percentage points compared to the previous quarter; in second place was Bizkaia with 69.3%, an increase of 1.5 percentage points in respect of the previous quarter; and, finally, in Álava the employment rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to stand at 68.9%.

In relation to the types of contracts of salaried individuals, the number of people with permanent contracts increased by 11,100 in respect of the previous quarter and, in relation to the previous year, it rose by 51,400 people.

In six out of every ten households all the active individuals were employed and there were 6,300 fewer households where all the active individuals were unemployed

In the second quarter of 2023 it was estimated that there were 908,600 households in the Basque Country, of which a third did not have any active individuals, 400 fewer households than in the previous quarter. In almost six out of every ten households, all of the active individuals were in work, 11,100 more families; furthermore, households where all active individuals were unemployed stood at 25,900, 6,300 fewer households than in the previous quarter.

The second quarter of 2023 revealed an unemployment rate of 7.4%, 1.3 percentage points down on the previous quarter

The unemployed population in the Basque Country, that is, individuals who are available for work, actively making enquiries and seeking employment, was estimated to be 77,600 in the second quarter of the year, 14,500 down on the previous quarter. The number of unemployed women, 38,400 individuals, decreased by 8,600, whilst the number of unemployed men fell by 5,900, reaching a total of 39,200 for the quarter.

The data for the second quarter of 2023 revealed an unemployment rate of 7.4%, 1.3 points less than the previous quarter. The unemployment rate for women dropped 1.7 percentage points to 7.6%, and the unemployment rate for men stood at 7.2% (-1.1 percentage points).

With regards to nationality, the unemployed population figure decreased among Spanish nationals by 9,800, to stand at 57,900. Among foreign nationals it fell by 4,800, to 19,600 people out of work.

By province, the number of people out of work in Bizkaia fell by 8,700, and the unemployment rate dropped by 1.6 percentage points to stand at 8.2%. In Álava, with 11,000 people out of work, the number of unemployed people fell by 3,100 and the unemployment rate decreased by 1.8 percentage points to 7%. In Gipuzkoa, the number of unemployed people fell by 2,900 and the unemployment rate dropped 0.8 percentage points to stand at 6.2%.

As regards the capitals, there were 2,900 fewer unemployed people in Vitoria-Gasteiz and 1,400 fewer in Bilbao; however, in San Sebastian there were 2,500 more people out of work compared to the previous quarter.

According to EUROSTAT, the Statistical Office of the European Union, in May 2023 the deseasonalised unemployment rate of the European Union as a whole stood at 5.9% and that of Spain stood at 12.7%.

Over the last year, the number of employed people increased by 0.9% and the unemployment rate dropped from 8.5% to 7.4%

The employed population in the Basque Country increased by 0.9% in relation to the second quarter of 2022, 8,500 more people in work, and the unemployment rate decreased by 1.1 percentage points (from 8.5% to 7.4%), with 12,300 fewer people unemployed in the Basque Country compared to the second quarter of 2022.

97.2% of average registered workers were in work, according to ILO criteria.

It is calculated that there were 933,100 registered workers for the quarter on average in the Basque Country, i.e. the number of individuals resident in the Basque Country who were registered for Social Security, weighted by the number of days worked in the quarter. Of those, the PRA estimates that 97.2% were employed, a total of 907,200 individuals, according to criteria from the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

Amongst those employed according to ILO criteria in the PRA, 33,700 people (3.5%) were not registered in the Social Security system, because they belonged to public mutual societies for civil servants, or because they were in other situations.

35.8% of unemployed people were not registered as being unemployed

It is estimated that there was a quarterly average of 89,000 unemployed people registered with Lanbide, i.e. people residing in the Basque Country who were registered on Lanbide at the time of the survey in any one of the categories designated for registered unemployment. Of those, 52.3% were unemployed according to the ILO definition (46,600 people). 35.8% of unemployed people according to the ILO definition in the PRA were not registered as unemployed with Lanbide (27,800 people), even though they may have been registered under other categories of job seekers.

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tel.: 945 01 75 62