Spanish job growth slows to weakest pace since 2019 despite migrant regularization boost

Employment grew by 73,600 people in the third quarter, the smallest increase since 2019, while unemployment rose by 95,900 and climbed back above 10% of the labour force.

The Spanish economy is still creating jobs, but at a pace that is fading. Between July and September **73,600** more people were employed, according to the Labour Force Survey (EPA) published on Tuesday. It is the lowest increase since **2019** and the second worst since **2013**, the toughest year of the financial crisis. The figure comes despite the boost from the mass regularization of more than a million migrants approved by the government of **Pedro Sánchez**.

## Unemployment breaks through the 10% barrier

Summer was not good for unemployment. Joblessness rose by **95,900** people and the rate climbed back above **10%** of the labour force. A market that creates little net employment and loses labour force participation along the way delivers that outcome: fewer new jobs and more people searching for work without finding it.

## Industry loses ground to services

The sector breakdown reveals an uncomfortable pattern. Social security registrations are rising in **Services**, with less skilled jobs, and falling in **industry**. Over the past twelve months, the industrial sector lost more than **25,000** workers, while Services and Construction gained ground. In other words, the jobs being created are concentrated in lower value-added branches.

## A cooling market

The comparison with the recent past paints a clear picture: the pace of job creation has slowed to levels last seen six years ago. The regularization of migrants has propped up social security registrations, but it has not been enough for the third quarter to post a better result. With industry in retreat and unemployment on the rise, the Spanish labour market heads into the end of the year without the cushion of previous quarters.