Unemployment rises in September for second month in a row

This September 6,881 people lost their job, which raises the number of unemployed in Catalonia to 513,187. This figure represents the second month in a row with an increase in the unemployment rate, according to data published by the Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security. However, there are 62,625 less unemployed people than in September last year and there have been 27 consecutive months with a lower unemployment rate in comparison to 2014. The number of unemployed in the whole of Spain was 4,094,000 people.

Woman entering an Employment office in Barcelona (by ACN)
Woman entering an Employment office in Barcelona (by ACN) / ACN / Shobha Prabhu-Naik

ACN / Shobha Prabhu-Naik

October 2, 2015 03:43 PM

Barcelona (CNA).- The number of unemployed people in Catalonia increased by 6,881 people in September to give a total of 513,187. Although the increase for this month was higher than for September 2014, the overall figure is still lower than last year and it represents the 27th consecutive month of inter-annual decreases. The total number of unemployed people in Catalonia decreased by more than 62,000 people in annual terms. In the whole of Spain, the number of unemployed increased by 0.64%, which is a relatively positive outcome considering the termination of many seasonal contracts in September.


Unemployment in Catalonia increased by 6,881 people, which represents a higher increase than in September 2014. This represents a second consecutive month of rising unemployment and pushes the total figure to 513,187 people without a job. However, the total is 10.88% lower than it was last year, with 62,625 less unemployed, according to the Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security. The sector which saw the largest increase in unemployment was the services sector, mainly due to the termination of seasonal contracts.

Although these past two months show a rise in unemployment, the inter-annual trend shows a 27 consecutive month decrease in unemployment figures.

Unemployment has also risen in Spain, with 26,087 more unemployed and a total figure of 4,094,024 people without jobs. The number is also lower than last year’s total but the decrease in Spain is still smaller than in Catalonia, at 8% lower than last year.