Human Capital Notes
The foreign population in Spain's labor market
Abstract
Foreigners residing in Spain have a higher activity rate than nationals (76.8% versus 57.4% in 2010) and suffer a higher unemployment rate. These are some of the data provided in this issue, examining the status of the foreign population in Spain’s labor market. According to the data, over 80% of new jobs held by foreigners between 2000 and 2007 required little skill, while eight in ten jobs held by nationals consisted of skilled occupations. Furthermore, during the economic expansion the foreign population was employed mainly in the construction sector. This note also shows that the longer the time of residence, the less likelihood a foreigner has of suffering unemployment. Thus, a person residing in Spain for more than five years has a 20.8% lower probability of being unemployed than those who have been in Spain for less than a year. In terms of training, the proportion of people with non-compulsory education is very similar between nationals and foreigners. In contrast, there is a higher percentage of people with secondary school education among foreigners and a lower percentage of those with university studies.