Spain / The Real Jobs Crisis

Hunger. Austerity. Unemployment. Secession. Three people killed at a Halloween party stampede. Not a day goes by without bad news about Spain.

With family ties to Spain, I have always considered the Iberian peninsula my second home. After graduating from college in New York in 2009, I moved to Madrid. According to data released by the National Institute of Statistics last month, one in every four Spanish workers is currently unemployed. I myself have a job—for now. As the corporate development director of a tech start-up based in Madrid, I review resumes, interview candidates and make job offers, primarily for entry-level positions and paid internships.

But day in and day out, I am puzzled. Perplexed at the number of applicants who send in a resume and then don’t respond to calls. Dumbfounded by those who sign up for an interview and subsequently don’t show up. Bewildered by others who interview for a position and, upon being accepted, opt instead to enroll in a master’s program.

Granted, our start-up isn’t offering six-figure salaries. But our internships pay more per month than the per-semester stipends that Condé Nast offers its interns in the U.S. If unemployment in Spain is 25%, why is it that so many of its citizens are not jumping at the prospect of work?

The incongruence between the statistics and the actual situation extends beyond the cubicle. The majority of chachas, or housemaids, continue to be South American. It appears that Spanish women consider themselves too good for such domestic jobs. At anti-austerity protests, activists communicate with iPhones and smoke Marlboros. In a country that is supposedly in a critical situation, how is it that its inhabitants can still afford such luxuries? …

Choosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor from

Source:

Isabel Eva Bohrer: The Real Spanish Jobs Crisis – WSJ.com