Unemployment has risen in Andalucia for the first time in six months as the region’s labour market suffered its traditional August slowdown.

The number of people registered as unemployed increased by 3,394 in August, or 0.64%, bringing the total to 530,256.

It represents the biggest August increase since 2022, although the overall number of unemployed people remains at its lowest level for the month since 2007.

Compared with August last year, unemployment is down by 62,355 people, or 10.52%.

Meanwhile, Andalucia lost an average of 11,956 Social Security contributors during August, a fall of 0.33%, leaving 3,587,020 people registered as workers.

It was the third consecutive monthly decline in employment, although the August fall was smaller than last year’s loss of 17,416 contributors.

The latest figure also remains close to the record 3,604,924 contributors recorded in June.

Despite the monthly fall, Andalucia still has 111,619 more Social Security contributors than a year ago, an annual increase of 3.21%.

August is traditionally a difficult month for the Spanish labour market as summer contracts begin to expire and sectors including education and construction experience sharp seasonal slowdowns.

The apparent discrepancy between rising unemployment and the relatively moderate decline in Social Security affiliation is partly explained by how the two statistics are calculated.

Registered unemployment reflects the position at the end of the month, while the headline affiliation figure is a monthly average.

Healthcare and social services were the strongest-performing sector, adding 6,419 contributors, driven in part by summer replacement contracts.

Hospitality continued to create jobs despite the end of the peak summer period, adding 2,440 workers, although that was well below the more than 7,000 jobs created in July.

Administrative and support services added another 2,192.

At the other end of the table, education lost 9,343 contributors, making it by far the biggest drag on employment during August.

Retail lost 4,147 workers, construction shed 4,017 and manufacturing lost another 2,541.

Registered unemployment, meanwhile, increased overwhelmingly in the services sector, which added 2,610 people to the jobless rolls.

Construction recorded the largest proportional increase, while the number of people registered as having no previous employment increased by 325.

There were also significant differences between Andalucia’s provinces.

Malaga was the only province in the region where unemployment actually fell, recording 409 fewer unemployed people during August.

Unemployment increased by 1,457 in Sevilla, 545 in Cordoba, 457 in Granada, 393 in Jaen, 384 in Almeria, 328 in Cadiz and 239 in Huelva.

In terms of Social Security affiliation, only Cadiz and Jaen gained workers, adding 348 and 294 respectively. Sevilla suffered the largest absolute decline, losing 5,875 contributors.

Andalucia’s labour market weakened during August as expected, but both unemployment and employment remain considerably stronger than they were a year ago.

Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.