Valencian job market holds steady despite seasonal uptick in unemployment
October saw a small rise in jobless numbers as summer work ended, but strong annual gains and record youth employment keep optimism high.
The Regional Secretary for Employment, Antonio Galvañ, has shared his assessment of the latest unemployment figures for October in the Comunidad Valenciana, released by Spain’s Ministry of Labour and Social Economy. The data show a modest increase of 742 unemployed people during the month.
Galvañ explained that this uptick is mainly due to the end of the summer season, which traditionally affects the service sector, the only area to register an increase (up 0.45%). In contrast, agriculture (-1.77%), construction, and industry all saw unemployment drop.
Despite this seasonal adjustment, Galvañ emphasized that the region’s overall performance remains strong. In fact, the Comunidad Valenciana recorded the smallest relative increase in unemployment of all Spain’s regions this October.
He also pointed out that the annual labour market trend remains solid, noting that Valencia posted the second-largest year-on-year drop in unemployment in Spain, just behind Andalusia. “Today, there are 20,253 fewer unemployed people than there were a year ago,” he said.
Social Security affiliation data back up this positive picture. According to Galvañ, the Comunidad Valenciana leads Spain in employment growth, both month-on-month (+1.65%) and year-on-year (+3.42%).
Regionally, unemployment fell in the Province of Valencia (-0.67%), but rose in Province of Alicante (0.98%) and Province of Castellón (1.68%). A total of 140,798 employment contracts were signed in October, with 53.3% (75,029) being permanent positions.
By sector, agriculture and construction performed particularly well. In fact, Valencia leads the country in annual growth of construction contracts, up 13.8%.
Finally, Galvañ highlighted encouraging news on youth employment, long a priority for the regional government. The number of young jobseekers fell to its lowest October level since records began in 1996, with 2,163 fewer unemployed young people than a year ago, a 10.2% drop.
