Business · Economy · 5 hrs ago
Spain's shorter contracts and inactive workers raise concerns after labour reform
A USO analysis of Spain's job market says labour contracts have become shorter since the 2021 reform restricted temporary hiring.
In the first nine months of 2026, Spain recorded 12.15 million contracts, and 42% were permanent, compared with 10.6% in the same period of 2021.
But the average contract lasted 45 days, down from 54 days in 2021, and one in five lasted a week or less.
The analysis also counted 790,692 inactive permanent seasonal workers seeking jobs in September, 78% more than in September 2021; these workers are not counted as unemployed.
Employment grew by 465,500 jobs over the past year, but 16.2 million contracts were needed to achieve that increase, an average of 34.7 per person.
The analysis says long-term unemployment also remains high: 43.8% of registered jobseekers had been unemployed for more than a year at the end of September.
Spain recorded 12.15 million employment contracts from January to September, with 42% classified as permanent.
The average contract lasted 45 days, down from 54 days in the same period of 2021.
More than 2.55 million contracts, or 21% of the total, lasted seven days or less.
The number of inactive permanent-discontinuous workers registered as jobseekers reached 790,692 in September, up 78% from September 2021.
The figures come from a report by the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO), based on data from Spain’s public employment service, statistics institute and Social Security.
- Who
- The report was prepared by the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO). It examines Spain’s labour market.
- What
- The report highlights shorter average contracts and a rise in inactive permanent-discontinuous workers registered as jobseekers.
- When
- The figures cover January to September 2026, with comparisons to 2021.
- Where
- Spain.
- Why
- USO says the figures show that the labour reform has not eliminated job insecurity or high labour turnover.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The labour reform took effect, and permanent contracts made up 10.6% of contracts in the January-to-September period.
Spain registered 12.15 million contracts, including 5.12 million permanent contracts.
There were 790,692 inactive permanent-discontinuous workers registered as jobseekers, compared with 444,011 in September 2021.
El Mundo published USO’s assessment of the labour market.
- Contracts registered, January–September
- 12.15 million
- Permanent contracts
- 5.12 million, or 42% of the total
- Average contract duration
- 45 days, down from 54 days in 2021
- Contracts lasting seven days or less
- More than 2.55 million, or 21%
- Inactive permanent-discontinuous jobseekers, September
- 790,692, up 78% from September 2021
What people are saying
contracts that burn out quickly
could lead us to question the efficiency of the Sepe in job placement, turning it into a mere benefits administrator