The Spanish labor market continues to show a unique energy, marked by the hiring cycles and seasonal peaks These trends are repeated year after year and, far from disappearing, evolve as the economy, technology, and consumption patterns change. For workers and companies, anticipating these movements has become a strategic necessity, not only to find job opportunities, but also to understand the true pulse of the national productive fabric. Although seasonality persists, recent years have brought new developments: changes in the duration of high hiring periods, new sectors driving employment, and a dynamism in job creation that merits in-depth analysis.
In this in-depth analysis, we'll break down the latest data and trends, cross-referencing information from major reports, job portals, and official results. We'll delve deeper into the When the main hiring peaks occur in Spain, which sectors and regions are at the center of them, and how contracts, vacancies, and salaries are evolving in an environment of high turnover and digital transformation. If you want to fully understand the real mechanics of employment in our country, this article is for you.
The Spanish labor market and its seasonal nature
Spain is a country where the seasonality of employment remains an essential feature. According to experts and official data compiled by agencies such as Social Security and the Ministry of Labor, affiliation and hiring experience marked variations around economic events and annual cycles very defined. Membership peaks usually coincide with the summer campaign, while the deepest valleys are observed in the middle of winter, especially after the Christmas season and the closure of temporary contracts associated with commerce and hospitality.
The structure of our labor market depends largely on sectors such as tourism, hospitality, commerce and education, where the demand for workers fluctuates dramatically depending on the time of year. For example, the highest number of Social Security registrations typically occurs between June 20 and July 20. In 2023, the peak was reached on June 20 with 20,95 million contributors, remaining at high levels well into the summer. These peaks coincide with the start of the tourist season, when hotels, restaurants, and the entire service sector bolster their workforces.
However, these peaks generate a cascading effect: as summer progresses, and even more sharply at the end of the tourist season and the school year, the number of members begins to decline sharply. The most notable declines occur in January, when the end of seasonal contracts in commerce and hospitality drags the number of members to its annual low. In January 2023, the day with the lowest membership was the 31st, with 20,04 million, almost a million less than the summer peak.
Temporality is still present Despite recent labor reforms, temporary contracts predominate in the most seasonal sectors, although there has been progress in contract quality and stability since the legislative change in 2022. Seasonality affects not only tourism but also education and commerce, where the completion of campaigns and courses determines the duration of employment.
Main hiring periods in Spain
Beyond the annual data, it's worth taking a closer look at the key moments of greatest job creation in Spain:
- Summer (June-July): This segment accounts for the largest number of contracts, driven by demand from the tourism sector. Companies hospitality and catering They become the largest generators of permanent and temporary employment.
- Spring (April-May): This is especially relevant in late Easter years, which usually coincide with the first major boom in hospitality and tourism, but also impacts agriculture and transportation.
- End of the year (October-November-December): In recent years, there has been a Increase in hiring during the commercial campaign which starts with Black Friday and ends with the January sales. Sectors such as purchasing, logistics, and warehousing experience one of their strongest periods during this period.
El analysis by InfoJobs and Esade For 2024, this pattern is confirmed: the most notable peak in vacancies coincides with October and November, key months due to the confluence of commercial campaigns and the start of the Christmas holidays. The second major peak occurs between April and August, a vital period for tourism, hospitality, and activities related to Easter and summer.
The valleys occur primarily in January and August. December, which years ago was one of the peak months at the close of the Christmas season, is currently seeing a lower volume of offers, as some bookings are brought forward to November and the sales surge is spread across different promotional periods.
Recent data on membership, vacancies and unemployment
Employment growth in Spain in recent years has been remarkable, particularly given the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Between 2021 and 2023, social security number grew by more than one million, reaching more than 21 million workers by the end of 2023, according to Eurostat. In April 2025, a record number of workers was recorded. 230.993 new members in just one month thanks to the pull of the hospitality industry during Holy Week, placing the total figure at around 21,6 million of contributors.
As for unemployment, April 2025 closed with 2.512.718 unemployed, the lowest level since 2008. The sharpest declines were in the services sector, supported by growth in tourism and hospitality, as well as in construction and industry. The decline in youth unemployment was notable, with a decrease of 20.095 people under the age of 25 in April, placing the number of unemployed young people at a historic low for this month.
Employment trends also show greater stability. The percentage of workers with permanent contracts reached 88% of those registered, although more than 55% of new contracts signed during the month were temporary, highlighting the persistence of dual employment. Compared to other major EU economies, Spain's growth is greater: since the 2022 labor reform, membership has grown by 9,3%, compared to 6,4% in Italy, 1,9% in France, and 1,6% in Germany.
The role of economic sectors: tourism, hospitality, logistics, technology and more
The seasonality of the labor market is especially visible in hospitality, tourism and commerce, but also in activities such as construction, manufacturing, and education. The Funcas report and analyses from the Indeed platform highlight that between 2020 and 2024, the employment boom was widespread, although at very different rates depending on the sector:
- Hostel and Tourism: They are the protagonists of the summer and Easter peaks, with increases of more than 100.000 members in April 2025 alone. They represent the main driver of seasonal membership, but also the greatest volatility.
- Logistics and purchasing: Its share grew by around 9% annually, driven by the rise of e-commerce and digitalization, with notable peaks in the fall and winter (commercial campaigns). In 2024, logistics vacancies experienced significant growth, with 291.649 openings, more than 20.000 more than the previous year.
- Technology and IT: Although their job openings have been cut in 2024, they continue to offer the highest average salaries, at over €34.000 per year.
- Construction and manufacturing industry: Growth was 109% and 123% respectively above pre-pandemic levels, demonstrating an explosive recovery and steady demand for labor.
- Other services: These include activities such as art, entertainment, cleaning, customer service, driving, food preparation, and healthcare, which tend to increase during holiday periods and the Christmas season.
Temporary hiring remains high in these sectors, although the general trend points to higher vacancy turnover, meaning positions are filled and replaced more quickly due to constant demand and the digitalization of recruitment processes.
New dynamics: turnover, digitalization and salaries
The Spanish labor market is not only growing: becomesAccording to data from Indeed and Funcas, from February 2020 to February 2024, job openings in Spain grew by 50%, reaching historic levels. However, at the beginning of 2024, an 8% decline in the total job openings was detected, although the number of new job openings continued to increase, suggesting a more agile and dynamic turnover cycle.
This accelerated turnover of vacancies is due to two factors: the digitalization of job portals (which facilitates the rapid publication and closing of offers) and the need to fill positions almost immediately in sectors with high demand. For example, in 2023 the monthly average of new job postings on Indeed in Spain was 53.000, accompanied by 7,6 million monthly searchesOn InfoJobs alone, an average of 200.000 vacancies were posted per month in 2024.
El Indeed salary indicator shows that the correlation between the number of job offers and wage increases is especially strong in low- and middle-wage occupations, where wage growth reached almost 6% in 2023. In contrast, high-wage occupations experienced less pronounced increases.
Seasonality periods according to autonomous community
The territorial differences In seasonal employment, these are notable and deserve special mention. Madrid and Catalonia dominate the job listings, representing 26% and 21%, respectively, of the total vacancies on InfoJobs in 2024. Andalusia and the Valencian Community occupy the next highest positions, although job listings decreased in these regions compared to previous years, except in Madrid, which maintained its growth.
In terms of salaries, the Basque Country and Navarre lead the way with the highest average salaries offered, followed by Madrid and Andalusia. On the other hand, Extremadura was the region where salaries offered decreased the most in 2024, falling by an average of €2.843 compared to the previous year.
The influence of sectoral seasonality also varies across regions: coastal areas and those with a higher tourist burden experience the most pronounced peaks in membership during summer and Easter, while industrial regions such as the Basque Country and Navarre have more sustained demand throughout the year.
The effect of labor reform and high value-added jobs
One of the most important developments in the contractual dynamics of the last decade has been the labor reform of 2022This legal change boosted permanent employment and workforce stabilization, although seasonal hiring peaks persist. Since the implementation of the reform, Social Security has added 1,74 million additional workers, most of them with stable contracts.
The impulse of high value-added jobs This is another upward trend. Sectors such as information, communication, and scientific and technical activities have grown more than 15% since the end of 2021, well above average. This contrasts with the more seasonal and seasonal nature of the hospitality industry, although both sectors coexist and complement each other in the country's productive structure.
Digitalization and the demand for technological profiles have reinforced the need to adapt and invest in ongoing training, as the most in-demand skills evolve rapidly and the mismatch between talent supply and demand remains a concern for employers.
The international perspective: Spain versus Europe
The Spanish labor market has shown a much greater dynamism than the eurozone average, especially in the post-pandemic recovery. Between 2021 and 2023, Spain doubled its employment growth rate compared to the eurozone, thanks to the recovery of lost jobs and higher trend growth than before the pandemic.
Furthermore, the labor shortage has been felt more acutely here than in neighboring countries: in 2023, 8% of industrial companies, 13% of construction companies, and 23% of service companies cited a lack of personnel as the main barrier to increasing production. This challenge has eased in early 2024, although it remains above historical levels.
Regarding wages, Spain's growth was in line with the eurozone during the recovery, although the rebound was more pronounced, reaching 6,3% compared to 5,2% in Europe at its peak. Currently, wage growth is slowing but remains above the European average.
Job portal trends: InfoJobs, Indeed, and other sources
Digital platforms have revolutionized the way we search for jobs and measure hiring cycles. InfoJobs y Indeed are the most widely used sources for monitoring the Spanish labor market. In 2024, InfoJobs recorded nearly 2,4 million vacancies (3% less than the previous year) and more than 4 million candidates registered, which gives an idea of the high competition among job seekers.
The joint report of InfoJobs y Esade It highlights that the monthly peak of vacancies in 2024 was 241.022 in October, coinciding with the start of the year-end shopping season. December, on the other hand, was the month with the fewest vacancies. The categories with the most vacancies were purchasing, logistics and warehousing, as well as sales and marketing, arts and crafts, and the technology sectors.
En Indeed, the monthly average of new job postings in 2023 was 53.000, with an upward trend in job turnover and a clear correlation between peak job postings and salary increases. Indeed's methodology, backed by studies by Funcas, shows that the sector and geographic composition of online job postings aligns fairly well with official data, although it is always necessary to clarify that one posting may reflect several vacancies and that some jobs are not published on these channels.
Occupations and professional groups: Where is demand increasing the most?
The breakdown by occupation highlights that the most sought-after profiles with the highest demand peaks are not always the most highly qualified. Construction and manufacturing have experienced the largest relative increases post-pandemic, followed by consumer-oriented and other services.
Within the lower-paying categories, jobs with high turnover and higher job posting volume have seen the most significant salary increases. Traditional professional occupations and high-paying jobs, meanwhile, show a more stable trend, with no major fluctuations in demand or salaries offered.
Real wage growth (adjusted for inflation) has been particularly pronounced in low- and medium-wage occupations, in response to pressure from the minimum wage and the shortage of professionals in the sectors most affected by turnover.
The immediate future: Will peaks and seasonality continue?
The trend of recent years shows that Seasonality remains a central element in the Spanish labor market, but significant changes are taking place. Hiring peaks tend to be longer, fragmented across different periods of the year depending on sales campaigns and promotional events. Furthermore, digitalization allows companies to adapt their teams more quickly, reducing the duration of peaks but increasing the frequency of hiring.
The challenges for the immediate future include reducing time-based duality, consolidating contractual stability, and strengthening training in digital and technological skills, which are increasingly present in both new jobs and more traditional sectors.
This constantly changing market shows that the boom and bust periods are clearly defined, marked by the strength of tourism, commerce, and hospitality, but also by the growing importance of logistics, technology, and high-value-added services. Anticipation and flexibility will be key for workers and businesses in this evolving scenario.