More than 5 years after the start of the Great Recession, Spain?s unemployment rate is continuing to rise. With six straight quarters of above 25% unemployment, with 26.03% in December. Spain is home to about one-third of the Eurozone?s jobless and about one-tenth of its total population. Although the Spanish economy grew in the third quarter, it is estimated that year-over-year the economy shrank by about 1.2%. In order to create enough new jobs to see a drop in unemployment, it is projected that the Spanish economy must grow by a minimum of 0.7% annually. Not only did unemployment increase, but real employment in Spain also decreased.
See "Spanish Unemployment Stays Above 25% as Rajoy Seeks Growth (1)", Angeline Benoit, Business Week, January 22, 2014