Press Release 29/11/2023

BASQUE BUSINESS STRUCTURE AND DEMOGRAPHY. 01/01/2023

On 1 January 2023, the number of people employed in the Basque Country increased by 1.8%, although there was a decrease in the number of companies

Almost seven out of ten new jobs corresponded to women

On 1 January 2023, there were 149,070 companies operating in the different sectors of activity in the Basque Country, which represented a decrease of 2,018 companies compared to the previous year (-1.4%) according to Eustat data. These companies carried out their activities in 166,587 establishments (factories, businesses, offices, etc.) that registered, however, a 1.8% increase in the number of people employed. Four sectors stood out as having above average growth in employment. Information & Communications (4.8%), Arts Activities and Other Services (3.1%), Professional Activities and Support Services (2.9%) and Construction (2.2%).

Amongst the sectors with decreases in the number of people employed, it is worth mentioning the Financial and Insurance Activities sector, with 2.8% less employment this year, the Property activities sector, with a drop of 2.1% and the Agriculture, Livestock and Fishing sector, down 2.0%.

As regards structure, the largest sector, according to the number of establishments, was Trade, Transportation and Hospitality, (35.4% of the total), followed by Professional Activities and Support Services (16.3%) and Construction and Public Administration, Education and Health (both with 11.8%).

The distribution of establishments according to their size remained very similar to previous years. Barely 2,609 establishments, 1.6% of the total, were establishments with an average of 50 or more employees, despite accounting for 42.1% of the total number of employees as a whole. On the other hand, 119,809 establishments, almost three-quarters of the total, were small (fewer than 3 employees) and accounted for 15.5% of all those in work. It is in these small establishments where the loss of employment has been concentrated, with 3,153 fewer jobs. In contrast, employment grew most in the strata of 50 and more employees and 20 to 49 employees, gaining 12,065 and 4,355 jobs respectively.

As regards the average size of the establishments, by large activity branches, the greatest concentration of employed individuals was in the Industry, Energy and Sewerage sector, with an average size of 16.9 in the Basque Country as a whole. Álava stood out with 20.7 people, while the average size in Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa was 15.3 and 16.8 people per establishment, respectively.

By sex, 45.0% of people employed in the Basque Country during 2022 were women, half a point higher than the previous year. The sectors with most female employees were Healthcare and Social Services (77.8% women), Education (67.4%) and Services (62.6%). By contrast, the sectors in which the majority of employees were male were Construction (89.2%), and Industrial and Primary, with approximately 79% in both cases.

COMPANIES

Of the total of companies (legal units) that provide support for establishments’ activities, 97.0% were based in the Basque Country and the remaining 3% (4,469) were in the rest of Spain. Of those with 100 employees or more, the percentage based in the Basque Country reached 78.0%. Bizkaia accounted for slightly more than half the companies based in the Basque Country, with 74,951 companies (51.8%); Gipuzkoa had 49,205 (34.0%) and Álava 20,445 (14.2%).

The average size of companies in the Basque Country remained stable, with 6.2 employees per company and 5.6 per establishment. Companies under individual ownership only had 1.4 employees, both per company and establishment, whereas for the other legal forms these averages reached 13.2 and 10.5 employees, respectively.

COMPANY DEMOGRAPHICS

Regarding the age of the companies, the fact that many of these Basque companies are relatively new stands out. 30.6% of companies operating in the Basque Country were five years old or less and the percentage of those in operation for two years or less stood at 13.5%.

Regarding rotation, and taking into account establishment openings and closures, 13,211 began and 15,107 ceased trading during 2022, with a negative balance of 1,896 establishments. The establishment birth rate (quotient between those created and the stock) was 7.9% and the death rate was 9.1%. As a result, the net growth rate was negative (-1.1%).

The greatest rotation was seen in the branches of Trade, Transportation and Hotel Management & Catering, with 27.9% of new openings and 31.8% of closures, Professional Activities and Support Services, with 18.4% of new openings and 18.8% of closures and Construction, with figures of 16.9% and 17.7% respectively.

In the analysis of demography by legal status, the establishments created under the individual ownership formula stand out for having generated 68.8% of new openings and 63.2% of closures.

In terms of the number of people employed, individually-owned establishments accounted for 39.1% of people employed in new establishments and 42.5% in establishment closures. Limited Companies were also noteworthy, with 38.1% of jobs created in establishments opened and 35.0% of jobs lost in establishment closures.

In terms of establishment size, the most dynamic stratum was that of 2 employees or under, as has become the norm. This stratum alone accounted for 90.2% of all new openings and 91.6% of all closures.

On the contrary, the stratum of large establishments, those with 50 or more employees, only accounted for 0.2% of new openings and 0.1% of closures. On the other hand, it accounted for 13.6% of all jobs created in new establishments and 6.6% of all jobs lost in establishment closures.

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