The Confederation of Business Associations of the Balearic Islands, or CAEB, has appealed to administrations to avoid damaging the job creation process and PIMEM says it’s also concerned about the effect that International and National markets could have on the Balearic Islands in coming months.
CAEB has issued a statement claiming that the affiliation and unemployment data for February is less favourable in the Balearic Islands than at National level and pointed out that in the Peninsula unemployment drops in all sectors, whereas in the islands there’s an increase in layoffs in Industry and Construction.
CAEB President, Carmen Planas, said the average number of affiliated workers in February increased by 1.8% year-on-year to 441,667 which is the same as in January and "slightly below the National average of 1.9%.
Unemployment fell by 1% compared to the same month last year, and at National level it was down 1.3%.
According to the CAEB, there was an increase in unemployment of 6.3% in Construction and 1.7% in Industry and a decrease of 1.5% in the Service Sector.
Temporary contracts are up by 117.1% and permanent hires by 1.8% compared to February 2019.
But Carmen Planas again urged caution saying “it is necessary that the political decisions adopted take into account the current difficulty in getting both the economy and employment to grow”.
She also said she "regretted" that just as the economy is slowing down, the Government announced an increase in social contributions and new taxes such as the Air Transport tax, which she said "will harm the citizens of the Balearic Islands.”
The President of the Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises of Mallorca, or PIMEM, Jordi Mora, welcomed the decline in unemployment, but is "concerned about the possible effects of several International, National and Local issues in future months, including, the situation experienced by merchants and restaurateurs in Palma, the consequences of Brexit and the damage caused by Storm Gloria.”
“The tourist season is approaching and companies and workers have to work together, be prepared for the changes that may occur, be very flexible, have the capacity to adapt and be resilient and be prepared for a rebound effect and work on last minute reserves,” said Jordi Mora.
The cancellation of the Berlin Tourism Fair has generated alarm in the Tourism Sector, particularly since the German market is one of the biggest for the Balearic Islands.
"It is necessary to be very cautious, to call for calm and tranquility, our tourists will enjoy their holidays in Majorca in a normal way," said Mora, but is concerned that “in Palma a multitude of businesses are closing because the owners are not happy with the policies carried out by Palma City Council and the lack of dialogue.”
Jordi Mora also spoke out about the amount of work that still needs to be done to rectify damage caused in Majorca by Storm Gloria.
“We have shattered boardwalks, there’s a multitude of rubble in villages and on beaches where the sand has disappeared. It’s a bad image to give tourists and when the Tourism Sector suffers the number of jobs decreases,” he said.
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