Caritas reports 4.3 million in severe exclusion in Spain

Caritas reports 4.3 million in severe exclusion in Spain

The IX Report on Social Exclusion and Development by Caritas, prepared by its Foessa Foundation, quantifies what half of Spain sees daily but struggles to name: 4.3 million people in severe exclusion, including 1.4 million minors. That is one-third of the total. The organization summarizes it in a phrase that could fill a treatise: "People are not failing; the system is." The document calculates a 52% increase in severe exclusion since 2007. This is not just a snapshot; it is a movie getting worse.

What the Caritas and Foessa Foundation report says

The central diagnosis is that the Spanish middle class is deteriorating, pushing many households toward the lowest strata. The figure of 4.3 million people in severe exclusion breaks down as trinc: 1.4 million are minors. One-third of the total. This is the uncomfortable data point because child poverty is not corrected by one good economic cycle, but by two. In the discussion thread, a user argues, based on the report, that nearly 70% of the 4.4 million people in severe poverty are Spanish nationals, a nuance that dismantles several bar-stool slogans in both directions.

The report is not an isolated pamphlet. Caritas has been measuring this for nine editions, and the pattern repeats: each edition finds more people on the edge. The novelty is not poverty itself, but its composition: less episodic, more structural.

Retail giants urge hiring 16,000 workers

The same thread cites employers from El Corte Inglés, Carrefour, and Ikea, who demand an immigration plan to cover 16,000 vacancies. The scene has its irony: while one-third of the country witnesses a surge in severe exclusion, three retail giants say they cannot find hands. It can be interpreted as there being too many people and too few workers, or too many workers and not enough salary to attract them. Both readings circulate.

Some argue that vacancies are filled by raising wages rather than importing labor. The counter-argument is that during specific campaigns—January sales, summer, Black Friday—the volume of temporary hiring makes serious training impossible. And here lies the fine detail: the calculation of how much it really costs to train for four weeks of work is something no one publicly breaks down.

Overcrowding returns to 2004 levels

Eurostat adds the final touch: 9.1% of Spain's population lived in overcrowded conditions in 2024, the highest rate since 2004, when it hit 13.6%. That affects 4.4 million people. Cramped apartments, sublet rooms, families sharing flats with strangers. The indicator does not speak of sentimental poverty; it speaks of square meters per person.

The series has a clear message: overcrowding fell during the boom, hit bottom, and has risen again. It is the most honest thermometer of existing housing because it depends on no one's political will.

€1,000 salaries and €1,500 rents

According to data used by participants, seasonal wage floors hover around €1,000 to €1,200 per month for full-time jobs, dropping to €800 or €900 for part-time contracts. On average, rent ranges between €1,000 and €1,500. The subtraction does not need Excel.

In the thread, some argue that the system needs continuous growth: if the population shrinks, consumption drops, and the model wobbles, so population is imported to sustain GDP.

The migration axis and tension across Europe

Some participants argue that the arrival of people from poorer countries puts downward pressure on wages and worsens the housing problem. Others respond that Spain is aging and the demographic pyramid cannot support itself. Both things may be true at once, which is the uncomfortable aspect of the issue.

Outside Spain, there is a laboratory case. A user cites South Korea and Japan, which have not bet on mass immigration; they say these countries are economically stagnant, yet their standard of living remains high. The unanswered question is whether that stagnation is sustainable or just a countdown. No one knows.

The Foessa report closes with a warning and no solutions. The figures are there. Consensus, however, appears nowhere.