According to Turespaña, the number of Social Security affiliates linked to tourism activities surged by 5.5% in May compared to the previous year, reaching an all-time high of 2,752,872. This remarkable growth marks the best May in history for the tourism sector. Furthermore, tourism employment now constitutes 13.3% of all affiliated workers in the Spanish economy.
Minister of Industry, Trade, and Tourism, Héctor Gómez, expressed his excitement over the extraordinary figures, as they coincide with the upcoming historic summer in terms of tourist numbers and spending. He emphasized that not only has the tourism sector made a quantitative recovery, but it has also made significant strides in terms of improved service quality, attention, and qualifications. The growth in employment indicates greater social protection and secured labor rights for professionals in the industry.
The number of salaried employees in the tourism sector experienced a remarkable 6.7% YoY growth in May, accounting for 81.9% of all workers in the industry. The branch of activity that witnessed the most significant increase in employees was tour operators, with a growth rate of 13.4%. Additionally, the number of self-employed workers also increased by 0.5% in May.
Balearic and Canary Islands, two Spain’s regions where employment grew the most
In terms of regional performance, all Autonomous Communities saw a rise in Social Security affiliates linked to the tourism sector in May. The Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands emerged as the leading regions, experiencing the highest growth rates of 8.1% and 7.4%, respectively.
Across various branches of activity, there was a positive year-on-year variation in affiliates linked to tourism activities. The hotels and restaurants branch witnessed an increase of 87,544 workers (55,257 in food and beverage services and 32,287 in accommodation services), while travel agencies saw a rise of 6,571 workers. Moreover, other tourism activities recorded an increase of 50,157 persons. These numbers reflect the thriving state of the tourism sector in Spain during the given period.
