A delivery man carries packages on a street in Madrid, Spain, Jan. 28, 2025. Spain concluded 2024 with record employment figures, according to the Economically Active Population Survey (EPA) published by the country's Statistical Office on Tuesday. The unemployment rate dropped to 10.6 percent, the lowest since the second quarter of 2008 when it was 10.36 percent. (Photo by Gustavo Valiente/Xinhua)
MADRID, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Spain concluded 2024 with record employment figures, according to the Economically Active Population Survey (EPA) published by the country's Statistical Office on Tuesday.
The survey revealed that in the fourth quarter of 2024, 21,857,900 people were employed, marking an increase of 34,900 (0.89 percent) compared to the previous three months.
Over the entire year, 468,100 jobs were created, reflecting a growth of 2.19 percent, while unemployment fell by 265,300, to 2,595,500, a decline of 9.3 percent.
The unemployment rate dropped to 10.6 percent, the lowest since the second quarter of 2008 when it was 10.36 percent.
"We are on the way to 22 million people working in Spain, and we have lowered the unemployment rate by a percentage point," said Spain's Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz.
The minister attributed the progress to government policies, emphasizing that measures such as raising the minimum wage, labor reform, and reducing the length of the working week had "transformed the labor market" and made the country's economy more efficient. ■
A delivery man rides on a street in Madrid, Spain, Jan. 28, 2025. Spain concluded 2024 with record employment figures, according to the Economically Active Population Survey (EPA) published by the country's Statistical Office on Tuesday. The unemployment rate dropped to 10.6 percent, the lowest since the second quarter of 2008 when it was 10.36 percent. (Photo by Gustavo Valiente/Xinhua)
A sanitation worker is seen on a street in Madrid, Spain, Jan. 28, 2025. Spain concluded 2024 with record employment figures, according to the Economically Active Population Survey (EPA) published by the country's Statistical Office on Tuesday. The unemployment rate dropped to 10.6 percent, the lowest since the second quarter of 2008 when it was 10.36 percent. (Photo by Gustavo Valiente/Xinhua)
A staff member works at a gas station in Madrid, Spain, Jan. 28, 2025. Spain concluded 2024 with record employment figures, according to the Economically Active Population Survey (EPA) published by the country's Statistical Office on Tuesday. The unemployment rate dropped to 10.6 percent, the lowest since the second quarter of 2008 when it was 10.36 percent. (Photo by Gustavo Valiente/Xinhua)
