SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Jan. 3 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Deputy Minister of Employment of the Government of the Canary Islands, Isabel León, celebrated this Wednesday having reached the objective of reducing the 170,000 unemployed people that the regional Executive set for the 2023 financial year.
Despite this, he insisted that “we must continue working to adapt active employment policies to the needs of the productive fabric, that is, of companies, with the aim of creating more job opportunities in 2024 and subsequent years.”
Unemployment registered in the Canary Islands stood at 167,845 people at the end of December, the lowest figure since 2008.
The other employment indicator, Social Security affiliation, remains at historic highs, with 910,207 people working, an increase of 3.96% that makes the Canary Islands the Autonomous Community where the number of affiliates has increased the most in the last year, with 34,634 more contributors, includes a Government note.
For its part, the number of self-employed workers in the archipelago reaches 140,732 people, growing by 2,856 (2.07%) compared to last year, and by 231 (0.16%) in relation to the previous month.
The last month of the year showed 2,689 fewer unemployed people on the islands, which represents a decrease of 1.58% compared to November.
In year-on-year terms, a reduction of 15,315 people has been recorded, 8.36% less than in December 2022, placing the Canary Islands as the fourth region of Spain in which unemployment fell the most in 2023, behind the Balearic Islands, Aragon and Galicia.
Unemployment fell especially in December in absolute terms in the services sector, with 1,132 fewer unemployed (-1.45%), a decrease driven by the Christmas campaign, although in percentage terms it is agriculture, with 135 fewer unemployed (- 3.84%) which tops the ranking.
On the contrary, it rose slightly in construction, with 68 more unemployed (0.44%).
In relation to the same month of the previous year, the greatest decreases in the number of unemployed people occurred especially in the services sector (-6,234 people), hospitality (-2,290), commerce (-2,136), construction (-1,611 ), industry (-675) and agriculture (-490).
By sex, female unemployment has decreased by 1,976 women (-2.02%) compared to the previous month and male unemployment also decreased by 713 men (-0.98%). If compared to December 2022, female unemployment falls by 9,038 women (-8.62%) and men’s unemployment falls by 6,277 (-8.01%).
Regarding age, there is a monthly decrease in unemployment in all sections.
The greatest decreases, in absolute terms, occur in the 25 to 45 year old group, with 987 fewer unemployed people (-1.77%) and in the 45 year old or older group, with 955 fewer people (0.91%). For its part, youth unemployment decreases monthly by 747 people, -7.42%.
The general director of Labor, José Ramón Rodríguez, highlighted that another of the positive data that 2023 leaves is the decrease in the number of long-term unemployed, with a decrease in December of 552 people compared to November (-0.71%). .
If we look at the annual comparison, the decrease has been 4,123 people.
ALMOST 54,000 CONTRACTS IN DECEMBER
Rodríguez also explained that last month 53,941 contracts were registered in the Canary Islands, 17.15% less than in November and 1.65% less than in December 2022.
By type of contract, 39.89% have been permanent, while contracts lasting less than six months have been reduced by -5.80% in one year.
By island, compared to the month of November, unemployment decreased in the last month of the year in Tenerife, where 1,350 people (-1.83%) joined the labor market, Gran Canaria registered 1,171 fewer unemployed people (-1.58%) .
La Palma recorded a reduction of 198 people (-3.06%), as did Lanzarote, where it was 110 (-1.37%). However, the number of unemployed increased in La Gomera by 58 people (4.68%), in Fuerteventura by 51 people (0.80%) and in El Hierro by 31 people (4.34%).
In year-on-year terms, the reduction that has occurred in all the islands with the exception of La Gomera, which at the end of the year has 241 more unemployed, stands out.
